Making the Grade
by squeekness
Summary: Book four of my Children of the Gods series. Gambit's Red Team gets their time to shine. Will they pass or fail?
1. Chapter 1

Summary: Book four of my Children of the Gods series. Gambit's Red Team gets their time to shine. Will they pass or fail?

Rated M for language and some minor sexual content.

Disclaimer : I do not own the X-men or any of their associated villains, but all of the Siskans, the members of the Red Team besides Kyle, any of the characters that are involved with the Twilight dimension are mine. Please do not use them without my permission. Thanks. :)

This is an illustrated work and the art is or will be available soon on my website which you can get to by clicking on my profile.

(One)

Deep in the bowels of Romulus' Diamond Compound, Logan was having a strange moment. He had been kidnapped by Romulus, a man who claimed to know him, and had been dumped into a holding cell. He was locked onto a metal chair and stripped naked, a very compromising position. But it seemed that today's weirdness wasn't going to stop there. Two odd persons had just entered his holding cell by means of an air duct close to the floor and he hadn't expected company, at least not of this sort. One was a sparkling white lab rat, the other a tiny punked out Barbie doll, a girl lucky if she was even two feet tall. Logan looked first at the albino rodent and then at the girl who had followed it. The rat meant nothing, other than its white coloring indicating that it was domesticated and not wild, but the girl's Red Team uniform certainly did.

"You're one of Remy's right?" Logan dared to ask. He had already known that at least some of Remy's kids had been dragged here for fun and games so it wasn't that much of a reach.

"Wow, you're kinda fast for an old guy," the girl dared to joke as she dusted cobwebs and dirt from her uniform. It wasn't that the famous Wolverine didn't scare her, but he was locked up at the moment and something of a captive audience. Besides, strange situations let you get away with a lot. She figured she could afford to be a little flip as long as she could somehow get him out of this.

Logan looked her over, trying to work his way through what passed for a kid directory in his mind but he kept coming up blank. You would think she would have stood out in his mind what with her small size and head full of as many pigtails as she could gather, but he was good and truly stumped. To his defense there were a lot of new people living at the X-men's Arizona Complex these days and he was least familiar with the youngest ones as she clearly was. It didn't mean he wasn't happy to see her or at the very least, the screwdriver looking multi-tool that was strapped to her back like a nerd's favorite sword.

"I don't suppose you're as clever with that driver as you are with your mouth, kid," Logan joked tensely. His eyes were on the door now, hoping they weren't being overheard. If he had feral guards who could hear as well as he did all of this could be for nothing. So far all was quiet out there.

"I'll see what I can do," she offered and came closer, walking around the chair and taking a closer look at the locks for the cuffs around his ankles. He could see she was scared and more than a little embarrassed by his condition. He was naked and she was very young - fourteen, fifteen tops. Her small size did buy her some sympathy, he doubted she would ever find a real life partner unless there were other pint sized people running around. All she had was her sense of humor.

She could see him watching her and she couldn't help but joke, "Gee, Mr. Logan, I had no idea you were so...hairy." Her eyes were not focused on the fur covering his chest and legs, but on his very exposed crotch.

Logan just smiled at her. "You've been spending too much time with Grace."

Grace of course was someone that Logan was very familiar with. It was more than just the fact that he had saved Grace's life, her sense of humor was of some renown and something he was quite fond of.

"There's a lock here, I'll see if I can pick it," Tink said, fully aware that it was actually a compliment he had slipped her way. "If I open it do I get a jacket, too?"

Logan grunted a laugh, knowing she was referring to the fact that Grace had managed to snag one of his official jackets and often flaunted it around the Complex like a prize well earned. Even if he did reward his current diminutive savior with its equal, she would never be able to wear it. That was okay, it was the banter that was important here. She was relaxing and he was eager to set her at ease for the real task at hand.

"Kid, you get me out of here you can have my whole damn uniform."

Tink laughed but got to work. She took one look at the lock and then surprised Logan by setting the multi-tool down on its side, allowing its built in LED light to shine at the lock itself. She then reached into her jacket and pulled out a strange set of collapsible lock picks. These were custom made and they way she snapped them together declared they had been specially made for her. No normal sized human could have assembled them so easily, their hands would have been much too large. Logan had no doubt they were a present from Remy. Remy was thoughtful enough to vary the training of his precious charges, trying to cover as much ground as he could, but Logan couldn't have guaranteed that this particular trade would have been covered. It could be used for so many things, not all of them per the rules of the Complex. Gambit was trusting his kids to behave, something Logan might not have done himself. At the moment he was simply grateful she was even willing to try.

"You're in luck," she was quick to reassure, having looked the locks over. "These are regulation padlocks, something I've already practiced on. Shouldn't take me too long."

"Good to know," he replied to that, leaning over so he could try and see what she was doing. It was hard with the way he was strapped in. "As long as we're getting to be so friendly, why don't you tell me your name, kid?"

"They call me Tink. It's short for Tinkerbell, but anyone who calls me that kinda ends up hurt. The rat here is Jones."

" 'Kay, Tink," he answered to that with a short laugh. "How about you tell me how you ended up here with me?"

As she worked, Tink began to explain as best she could the strange events of her day. Early that morning, she had answered a scramble text from Aiden, bidding as many of Remy's crew that could to assemble up on the Complex's tarmac. Once gathered, Remy had flown them all to Logan's cabin in the woods. Logan had supposedly hidden himself on purpose, they had been told, making a game of it to see if anyone on Remy's team could find him. It was to be an impromptu drill of sorts. Once they landed, Remy and the kids began to investigate the woods, hoping to locate him there. That was when everything went wrong.

Out in the woods, someone had used a dart gun to disable the kids. That's when Tink knew this was no ordinary drill. Then had come the sudden fall as Dewy collapsed in the woods from being drugged. Dewy always carried her around in his Away Pack because she was so small. She could hear the sounds of the others going down and knew to keep her silence. At least she hadn't been terribly squished or anything when she went down even though she had to share pack space with Jones, Dewy's rat. Jones had squeaked some when they fell but he calmed when she began to pet him. He was used to being both in the Away Pack and with her. She was familiar and comforting. When she heard footsteps approaching she prayed they would not be discovered and they hadn't been, Daken had simply not had time to check their packs.

When the kids had been loaded into Daken's truck and he began to drive them away to who knows where, she had dared to peek outside the pack. What she saw was chilling – all of her teammates had been loaded up in back in a pile like so much cordwood - but she tried to remember her training.

Later, she could tell they had been moved to the train. If she remained quiet enough no one would know was there. Unfortunately it was clear early that the packs were going into an area that wasn't with her team mates. Still she tried not to panic. She must be quiet, she must be patient, she hadn't been discovered yet. Remy, being very thorough, had actually run drills on this scenario before. She knew to be quiet and just wait for her opportunity. She was Remy's ace in the hole so to speak and on more than one occasion she had used stealth to free her captive team mates. Maybe all that practice would pay off here. Alas, one good peek outside of the pack revealed that she was in a locked train car. Even if she managed to open the door, she would never be able to travel from one car to the next. It was better to wait and see if maybe her captives would reunite her with them once they got to wherever they were going.

That didn't mean the ride was uneventful. At one point there was a scary explosive sound and then everything leaned sideways for a horrifying moment or two, the car coming off the rails on one side and the packs all sliding around and tumbling over from where they had been piled. Tink had never been on a train before, never mind one that was thinking about tipping over. She was too small and frail, there was no way she would ever survive it. Lucky for her, the train righted itself and things calmed back down.

Tink did overhear an interesting conversation on the train while she waited for the next bizarre thing to happen. Right after the train had gone crazy and settled back down, two men walked into the train car where she was, no doubt looking for some privacy where they could whine without being overheard – by the boss at least. Tink was all ears, hoping to learn as much as she could about the people who had taken them. The first one said, "I hope Daken knows what he is doing."

"What do you mean?" his friend wanted to know.

"Daken mixing it up with some of the captives like that puts us all at risk. I don't know why he didn't just have us keep them out during the ride."

"Heh, he probably just wanted to have his fun."

"Yeah, at our expense. The damn train nearly derailed. Not all of us are healers. You think he even gives one lick about us?"

"Romulus is on the train. You can bet he gives a crap what _**HE** _thinks. The Master will kick his ass if he goes too far."

"And how long can he keep doing that? Before long we'll be taking orders from that mohawked freak."

"Careful, these walls have ears."

Tink had no idea who the guys were talking about - being inside a backpack without a view did limit one's captivity experience - but she did her best to try and memorize the names for later. Daken. Romulus. Strange sounding dudes but then this day had been anything but typical.

Jones wasn't as patient at waiting as she was. He was sniffing around, looking for ways out of the pack. As a last resort, Tink opened one of Dewy's protein bars. Like most males, he could be placated with food, and she was right. Smelling it made her hungry as well and so they shared the tasty snack, just taking in the ride while they ate. With his belly full, Jones settled down for a while at least, content to just stay in the quiet with her.

Once the train came to a stop, Tink was forced to be quiet once more as the packs were off loaded onto a cart and wheeled away into an unfamiliar building. Tink was worried about the move, she couldn't hear any of her teammates talking and now she was really afraid that she would become so far separated from them that if a rescue did manage to come, she would be overlooked and left behind.

The packs were taken several floors down by means of an elevator and then dumped in a pile into a storage room. This wasn't all good news. Yeah, the packs were not being watched, but she had no idea now where she was in comparison to the others. It wasn't all bad either - if Dewy was anywhere close to his rat, he would be able to see her through Jones' eyes. She knew a secret that Remy didn't – that Jones was getting smarter the more Dewy possessed him. It wasn't that Dewy was going behind Gambit's back with this, it was more that he couldn't quite prove it yet and so was waiting on it. Truthfulness wasn't on Tink's mind at the moment, though - it was somehow getting Jones close enough to Dewy for him to take over. To do that she would have to make her move sooner rather than later, the packs were likely be searched at some point.

Tink dug through the pack, found the multi-tool and her lock picks that had been stored inside. Her uniform was custom made and had special hoops and straps that helped her to sling the multi-tool behind her like a sword, freeing up her hands. She then unzipped the top zipper and Jones followed her out obediently just as she hoped. The one thing she was never so good at these days was being able to tell for sure when Dewy was in control of the rat or if Jones was acting on his own. He was well trained and used to being where she was. She did keep checking back at him, looking for some sign of greater intelligence, but so far Jones seemed to be just Jones.

This sort of solo adventuring was still new to her. Tink had figured that since she pretty much exclusively traveled with Dewy that he would always be there to help her. They got along so well that Gambit most often teamed them up with each other. When Gambit saw things that worked he wasn't one to mess with them. But at the moment she was on her own and having to figure out things on the fly by herself. It was sink or swim and she didn't enjoy the thought of drowning much.

She would have loved to be the one who saved the day today though it wasn't likely. It would have been so perfect to see the look on Dewy's face as she came in and rescued him. It was no great secret that she was crushing on him badly but she, like everyone else, knew that it could never work out, their size difference was too great. Still it would have been awesome to be the hero. Dewy had saved her ass so many times with schoolwork, now it was her time to help him in return.

Tink made sure she was alone in the storage room and then went for the nearest vent, knowing it was the best way to move around without being seen. The multi-tool was shaped like a screwdriver, but came with inter- changable heads, depending on the task. She had learned to use them all. They practiced this in the drills, not that she had thought this was going to be a talent she would ever use. Of course there was always the risk of getting lost in the vents. It wasn't like she had a map to go by and there was probably a lot of twists and turns. Still she went for it. The longer she stayed with the Away Packs, the greater the chance of either being discovered or left behind. Even in the drills reclaiming lost backpacks had never been a mission priority.

As she traveled in the vent she could hear terrible sounds, like someone screaming in horrible agony but she couldn't be sure who it was or if she was even hearing it right. Sound always traveled funny in these kinds of vents and ducts, her training had taught her that. It was still enough to frighten her into moving as quickly as she could.

It was just chance that she ended up with Logan. If she had taken a right turn she would have found the team, instead she went left and found Logan. Tink didn't regard this as unlucky. Everyone knew what a badass Mr. Logan was and she felt much safer now. At the very least there was no way she was going to be left behind now.

She was not unfamiliar with the lock picks and after just a moment or two, there was a satisfactory click as the lock on Logan's ankle came undone. She then went to the other ankle and having done this once before, unlocked that foot even faster. Logan was grateful for it, he stretched out his legs, getting the blood flowing. Next she shimmed up the back of his chair. Any fears Logan had about her agility were put to rest quickly, she was like a monkey up there, dexterous and quick as she made short work of the locks there as well.

Once he was finally free, he shook himself to wake his poor stiff limbs. He was all business though and he crept quietly towards his door, ready for anything. There was no window, but he crouched down and took a quick sniff. His nose told him that there was only one guy keeping watch out there. It was too easy but he would take it. He went back to Tink. "Stay back," he whispered to her. "I'm going to try and take the guard."

Wolverine returned to the door and smashed a hand against it, making an odd sound. The guard made a soft cry and just as Logan had hoped, he could hear the guy next begin to open the electronic lock. His guard must not have been very clever, he entered the room much too quickly (gotta always check those corners, tsk tsk!) and Logan caught him in mid-stride, spinning him around and snapping his neck just like that. Like he had done it his whole life. Like someone had to pay for what had been done to Kyle and this poor slob had been in the wrong place at the wrong time. Now wasn't the time to be picky about how guards were disposed of, Logan certainly didn't expect the same level of consideration going forward. Kyle's horrible screaming had seen to that.

Wolverine dropped the man down to the floor and his hands moved fast, undressing the guy and robbing him of his clothes. While he had been lucky enough to get a guard dumber than a sack of rocks, God in all of his humor had seen fit to make the guy near six and half feet tall and more than a little overweight. His clothes were huge. He did have a belt and Logan made use of it but he still looked more than a little ridiculous. He was forced to cuff the pants legs, cursing softly all the while. He could only hope the pants didn't fall down if he had to fight, hardy har har.

One look at the man's shoes made them out of the question. Long pants were one thing, clown shoes quite another. He would just have to go barefoot for now. It was just as well, he was probably quieter that way anyhow.

Logan was still trying to adjust the guy's oversized belt when he saw a quick flash of a blinking yellow light. It acted like some kind of emergency lighting but the blinking seemed too much like a signal of some kind for his liking. He hoped it wasn't an alarm announcing them. He didn't think he had made that much nosie but one could never tell what kind of security systems were in a place as complicated as this.

His door opened into a short hallway with another single door on the end leading out. Seemed easy enough. The moment he opened the door to his cell, Logan he could hear men moving in the main hallway outside of this one but it seemed like they are moving away from them, not towards them. Something odd.

Well there was nothing for it but to go forward and hope for the best. He looked down at Tink. "How fast can you run?"

"Pretty fast, but Dewy usually carries me."

He had no idea who that was but the comment still made sense with her being on a team. "I would but if I have to fight, darlin', you don't want to get caught in the middle of it."

That was true. Everyone knew about Wolverine's famous claws. "I'll keep up."

Logan nodded and slowly opened the door, taking it nice and easy as he went down the hall towards the door.

**(break)**

Julien Tanner, son of a rather notorious Thief, finally came awake slowly. He was feeling floaty and dreamy, far too comfortable to want to get up. He was warm and snuggly, something strange since the last he could remember he had been out in the snow. Even as odd as that might have been, he could almost swear he was currently lying down in someone's lap, someone secure and safe. But the only one who had ever held him like that was his mother so that couldn't be right.

Even though he wasn't entirely certain of where he might be, he wasn't afraid. It was the opposite really, he was feeling safe and at peace. It wasn't so much that anyone was telling him so, he just knew it as a certainty. It was a wordless comfort this knowing, and then he realized that this source of comfort was in part coming from a warm hand that gently grasped his own, a light pressure on his chest told him that another hand lay there as if checking his breathing. Why anyone would need to know that was beyond him, he was clearly fine, but then he recalled that Kimble often did just that, touching him here and there just to make sure he was okay. It made sense that the one inquiring of him now would be the Siskan, these feelings of comfort often came to him from the pilot. Empathy, Julien had been told it was, and he had grown used to the affection. It made him feel safe and cared for, at least as much as a pathetic sinner like himself could ever be loved.

"M' fine.." Julien breathed, still too relaxed to open his eyes. He just wanted Kimble to know he was okay.

"Good to know," came the reply, but not from whom the boy had expected.

Julien's eyes popped open and the first thing he saw was not the familiar face of Remy's precious Siskan but of the man himself, the one who claimed to be his father. It was he who had been holding him so gently and with kindness, the one who was worrying about him so.

Gambit's face had been a bit pale and tight with worry but it now brightened warmly when he saw Julien was in fact awake and well. Julien was hit with a familiar rush of conflicted feelings. The sensation of comforting love was still there but the more awake Julien became the less he trusted it. Julien had been raised by two other would be fathers - one harsh and cruel, the other claiming ultimate wisdom. Both had warped Julien's thinking enough that he could never fully embrace the man who was looking down on him now with what seemed to be genuine concern. This one had left him behind and was now trying to say that the ones who had actually been there for him were wrong in everything they had taught him, both good and bad. Now Julien could never be sure who to believe.

Julien slid his hand from Remy's with a small frown of distaste. "I think I dreamed someone was screaming," he said, unsure of what else to say. This was just too uncomfortable. He slithered out from Remy's lap, trying to make it look natural but didn't quite pull it off. It was just too obvious he couldn't have gotten away fast enough.

Remy continued to smile at his son but some of the warmth left his eyes. He was upset that once again his son had pulled away but he was trying hard not to show it. "Don' you worry none about dat. It's just good dat you finally awake."

"Then what exactly should he be worrying about?" Julien heard someone next to him question sharply in annoyance. It was Hercules, gruff as ever. It didn't hide the fear in the boy's voice.

Julien saw Gambit shoot Hercules a harsh look. It was enough to let the boy know that in spite of what Remy was trying to say, things were far from fine. Julien, still a bit intoxicated from the knockout gas and sedatives, rolled drunkenly onto his hands and knees and looked around him. He didn't recognize the room he was in now. The last thing he remembered was being out in the woods and now he was inside a building. That disconcerting manner of travel might have distressed someone else but this wasn't his first trip down this particular lane. When Jason Frost had first captured him for use in his slave camps Julien had been drugged and transported more than once in the same way as he had been moved today. Later, after that first capture, Frost had also abruptly moved Julien to at least two different pocket worlds before he had grown to trust the boy enough to transport him while he was awake. So coming to up in a strange place wasn't new, but it certainly was annoying.

Judging by the current unease in his squad mates, Julien had an idea he had missed a few things while he was out. Julien was a quick lad in spite of being chemically impaired. He understood that he was in some sort of prison, locked away with the male members of his squad beside him, the girls across the way. Next to them in a separate holding cell were the two Siskans. Julien guessed something was wrong with Kimble because the pilot was lying down and Aiden was holding on to him.

Julien knew this was bad, but then, like before when Frost had taken him, he had survived. Being captured didn't have to mean you were absolutely going to die, it just meant you had to be smart about things. The squad appeared to be intact at least and Gambit, their supposedly fearless leader, was also here. Gambit was former Gold Team, right? The way the Gold Team members got treated back home, one could surmise they could get out of anything.

It was true that Julien had joined the squad under duress and he had for the most part taken all those endless days of stupid drills as some sort of pathetic joke. He had never expected that he was learning skills he might actually need to use. He certainly had never expected to find himself in this sort of situation again.

Julien closed his eyes in a long blink, trying to stay calm. He was reviving more and more and with that was coming more and more pain. He generally suffered from chronic joint pains he did his best to hide, but worst of all was his poor mangled hand. The long hard march through the snow hadn't helped much either. Jason Frost had taught him that pain was part of life and should be welcomed. It was a gift from God and the more you suffered, the greater the Almighty had favored you.

Knowing that didn't make it any easier to endure. Hank had Julien on a regular dose of Motrin for some comfort and well, judging by how drastically things had changed while he was out, Julien could easily guess he had missed his next scheduled dose by a wide margin of time. The problem was that his meds were in his Away Pack which didn't seem to be anywhere in sight. He was just going to have to suck it up and get over it.

It was more than just his poor abused body making him uncomfortable. Julien could feel the restraining collar weighing heavily around his neck. It wasn't large or thick, and probably wasn't as heavy as it actually felt. No else could hear it, or so he was told, but it hummed to him now as always. The vibration seemed to go through his whole body, making him want to just scream at times, but he knew it had to be left on. The collar was a reminder of his weakness, of his frailty, a constant reminder of what he was capable of. He had killed with his power once before and he couldn't afford another loss of control, not ever.

Well, Julien wasn't about to let the others see his weakness. He rose up on his knees hoping to get all the way upright, but a wave of dizziness kept him there. He couldn't help himself but gag a little.

Remy patted his back gently. "You okay, fils?"

Julien jerked away, not wanting it and snarled, "I said I was fine!"

"Nice to see you're your usual charming self, Judas," Trigger teased without humor. This wasn't the first time he had seen Julien react to his father like that. Trigger could understand that Julien didn't want to be coddled, but Trigger had much too much regard for Remy to agree with the disrespect. "Can't be feeling that bad, eh?"

Remy scowled, still holding up his hands from when Julien had flinched away from him. He was upset, but it was unclear what hurt worse - the fact that Julien had rejected him again or Trigger using the codename he disliked so much.

Julien couldn't have cared less about either. He was more interested in getting out of this mess. "I don't suppose anyone came up with a plan while I was out?"

"Workin' on it as we speak," Gambit answered in a whisper, gesturing towards the cameras in the corners. He didn't want them speaking loudly enough to be overheard.

At that moment a door slammed open nearby with a loud bang. A guard walked in pushing a cart that smelled wonderful. Food and coffee, the two best smells in the world. At least Romulus was generous enough to bring them snacks.

The guard that was bringing them these refreshments was young and inexperienced, Remy's quick eye could see. He didn't check his surroundings effectively and carried no weapon. Hopefully this was something they could use. The kid's obvious feral attributes kept Gambit from dismissing him entirely – he had the prerequisite clawed hands and fangs, but did he also have enhanced hearing and smell? It could make taking him by surprise that much more difficult, assuming they could come up with a distraction quickly enough, that was.

Good thing Grace was on the ball. As distressed as she had been earlier because of Kyle, all of that had been placed aside as she went right to work. Without any prompting, she sidled up to the barrier like it wasn't even there, her jacket now open, giving full view of her ample breasts. "Hey handsome, you have no idea how glad I am to see you. That coffee smells the best."

The guard looked at her dubiously, but his eyes never left her chest. He was feral like the others here and well versed in body language. Whatever this girl was, she certainly wasn't scared of him. Her hips were tilted towards him suggestively, her eyes bright as they roamed freely over him like he was better to eat than the food on the cart. He was a little nervous as he replied, "All I've got for you is lunch, sorry."

"That's too bad."

Clearly thrown off balance, but doing his best not to fall for her wiles, the guard reached for the sliding food tray for her cell. The tray was built into the wall so that food could be delivered without having to deactivate the energy barrier. There was no escape that way, Grace could see, so she hoped for something better.

She was quick to reply, "Well, you might not have something for me, but I've got something for you. How about a nice hard suck?"

He snorted rough laughter. "I'm not that stupid, girl."

She just grinned and purred these words at him, making sure he could see that her tongue was pierced, "I swallow..."

Remy heard a sharp startled snort of surprise from behind him, Trigger maybe, but the guard didn't notice. He had frozen in place, shocked by what Grace had just let slip. It had gotten his attention enough that he was actually considering it. His shine was shot through with crimson, aroused by the possibility of her promise. Grace had played her part perfectly, Remy himself couldn't be sure if she wasn't teasing or not.

Not willing to let the opportunity slide, Remy tried to see if he could influence the guy even through the energy fields. If it had been anyone else but Grace he wouldn't have dared, but he knew she could handle this guy easy. He used his empathy, giving the guy a nudge as he used it to whisper, **Wouldn't that feel so nice? You know you want it. Go for it, it's not like anyone has to know... **

Amazingly enough, Remy thought it might be working. The guy actually reached into his pocket, sliding out a red keycard. He raised it to the scanner but a noise outside made him hesitate. He turned that way, waiting to see if someone was coming in after all.

The guard had no sooner taken his eyes off of the girls than something most unexpected happened. There was an odd splashing sound and the guard whipped back around, but it was too late. The slide tray was mysteriously full of water, water that was moving. He tried to shove the tray closed in a panic, he had no idea what it was and didn't want to know, but as his hands came in contact with the tray, liquid arms came up out of the tray and grabbed at him. He screamed, he couldn't help it and jerked back taking the arms with him. It was more weirdness than he could handle.

Remy wasn't sure at first what he was seeing himself but then couldn't help but smile. He had gone to great lengths to try and teach these kids to be innovative when it came to problem solving, letting them know that most often there was more than one way to get things done. They had to be clever, they had to be quick. Grace had done her best to take the initiative, but well, this day Tilda, his little water girl, got the First Place prize.

The guard slipped and fell taking down a half formed Tilda with him. It was common knowledge on the team that Tilda could live in water and make some water shapes, but they hadn't known she could convert her whole body over, or at least enough that she could actually dive through the sliding food tray like she had. If the girls had previously discussed this most creative plan over there in their cell, Remy had certainly missed it. Tilda was howling as she flailed. It sounded like rage and was quite frightening, but Remy knew better. The kid was in just as much terror as the poor guard she was throwing down to the floor.

It hadn't been planned, just something Tilda had tried impulsively the second she saw the opportunity. She had been thinking of ways she might be of help. She could have, in theory, changed and gone through the toilet bowl, but the ick factor aside, she couldn't be sure where she would end up coming out. It might have ended up being a waste of time.

Lucky for Tilda the guy she was currently wrestling with, a man nearly twice her size and weight, was too freaked out by what she had just done to properly put up an adequate defense. She wasn't making it easy for him to grab her, she had left her clothes behind during the change and was now keeping herself half formed, a substance too squishy for him to handle. Fighting him wasn't her goal of course, she pretty much just stumbled over him and slithered awkwardly away, snatching his key card and with it in her hand, brushed it against the scan box for Remy's cell and hit the green button.

Remy and the boys were already at the barrier when it crackled out, setting them free. Hercules, happy to finally have someone to take out his frustrations on, tackled the rising guard, smashing a colossal green fist into his face and shattering his jaw quite nicely. Remy had tried to teach his kids to restrain their violence but in this case, he wasn't being picky. Hercules could have his fun.

Remy was right behind Hercules. He saw Tilda stumble to her knees and gave her an assist, trying to cover her nudity as best he could. Once she was down and no longer falling, he took the keycard from her and tossed it to Trigger. Trigger caught it without question and used it to let the rest of the girls out, his eyes all on Izzie with real concern. Gambit's earlier thoughts about his interest in her were right on the money. He liked her well enough and had been displeased by the way the guard had been looking her and the other girls over. The girls were fine, happy to be let out of the cell.

"You're just too cool, Grace," Trigger praised as he watched her saunter out, chilly as a breeze. He couldn't help but tease, "Do you really swallow?"

"Only the baddest girls do," she just answered suggestively and helped Tilda to her feet. She had collected Tilda's clothing and was doing a much better job of getting Tilda covered than Remy had.

Trigger chuckled, amused. He used the keycard on the Siskans' cell next and went inside to help Aiden get poor Kimble on his feet. Kimble's hands were still black and gooey looking. Neither he nor Zander were going to be much use if they had to fight their way out of this. At least Zander could walk and wouldn't have to be carried. He and Aiden still had the shock collars on but there wasn't much they could do about it now.

Remy was quick to look his Siskans over, Kimble most of all with him being so injured. The Thief wasn't happy with how bad Kimble's hands were, seeing them up close revealed just how serious the injury was. Remy knew this was painful, months ago he had seen Aiden through a similar misfortune. Without thinking, Remy came forward to take the Siskan into his arms, his most prized possession, his face tight with worry. "Desole, yo' hands!" he couldn't help but gasp.

" 'M fine," the Punisher growled, not wanting it. He stopped Remy with a gesture of refusal and continued in Siskan, _**"I don't need no coddlin' like yer little baby Lover. Let's just git outta here."**_

Gambit checked himself, realizing his mistake. Kimble would have received him without question even with his aversion to public affection because he was that injured, but Zander was altogether different. It was like talking to a whole other person. Remy stepped back, trying not to show how much that hurt and returned his attention to the rest of the team.

Tilda was exhausted just from making the change to water and back again. Normally she shifted only when she was in water itself, not just empty air like now. She was impossibly thirsty and she sagged against Grace, too weak to stand on her own. She didn't look right, her body was terribly thin now and all sags and wrinkles like an old woman who had somehow stolen Tilda's body. She was also breathing heavily, like she couldn't catch her breath.

Remy was right there, his face tight with worry. "You okay, petite?"

"I need to drink. Water, anything. I've lost too much liquid."

"Don' you fret, we'll give you de firs' drink we see."

Izzie was doing her best to help, she assisted Grace in getting Tilda back into the clothes she had left behind in the holding cell. They were wet now from her shift but still better than being naked. She was sloppy, weak.

Once Tilda was more or less put back together, Remy snapped his fingers and the kids fell right into formation. They all knew they had precious little time to do what needed to be done. As it was they were lucky that whatever sounds they had made had so far gone unnoticed. They were still alone without having alerted anyone of their escape – for now. They needed to recover their missing team mates and find a way out of this maze, preferably without losing anyone else along the way.

In normal drilling back home, Remy would often let Hercules take the lead but this time he took point. They all knew this was the real deal and there were no complaints.

The room with the holding cells was longer than it was wide, the cells giving way to a short hallway with the exit door at the end, very much like the area Logan had found himself in. Near the exit door, there was a desk recessed on the right side. The desk was lined with computer monitors that showed both the cells and the outside view of the exit door. Remy was pleased to see that so far the guards outside hadn't been alerted just yet that anything was amiss. The walls had probably been soundproofed. Prisoners sometimes had the tendency to scream and we couldn't have that, could we?

Opposite the desk and on the left side of the hallway were some rows of shelves containing office supplies and some food stores. Remy was grateful to see a shelf with stacked cases of wrapped plastic water bottles. One of them was already open and he quickly grabbed a couple and tossed them backwards to Tilda who drank them down gratefully. She didn't stop there, Remy handed more back and she poured one of the bottles right over herself, amazing the others around her as her body soaked it right up as if she was a human sponge. It was worth the mess, she looked a lot more normal now and less like an old person.

Remy kept passing bottles behind him and soon all the kids were drinking, the knockout gas had made them all dehydrated and Gambit let them do it, knowing they would be sharper now. The distraction was worth it. It gave Remy time to notice two familiar looking silver keys hanging up on the wall – keys for the shock collars the Siskans wore, how convenient. He handed them back as well and Aiden made quick work of the devices, throwing them away in disgust.

Now that they were more or less back to being normal, Remy took two more steps towards the door, getting this going. He paused suddenly when he heard booted feet coming towards them at a fast run from the other side, another guard most likely. It was unlikely that their little escape attempt would go unnoticed for long but he had been hoping for more time.

Remy cocked his head in bewilderment when the running ended not with the door bursting open, but with some kind of fight right outside instead. He looked at the monitors and was next stunned by the sight of one lone guy taking on the two guards outside with hand to hand skills that would challenge any of the Thieves Remy had known. Gambit might have been grateful for what looked like some kind of save except for the fact that he had no clue who the guy was. It certainly wasn't anyone from his crew. The guy was a feral, all dark fur with a big black bushy tail to rival Hercules' own. Was this help or more trouble? Just in case he reached into his coat and found his bo staff. They hadn't been searched and he knew it was there. It was out in his hand and snapped to full length in seconds. He was done with surprises for today.

**(break)**

Logan and Tink carefully snuck out of Logan's holding room and moved silently down the hall towards the door on the end. Tink was being extra cautious. It was harder for her to follow like this on the ground, she had to make sure that she not only kept pace with her much larger companion but did so without getting stepped on. It wasn't much fun being so small that you were easily overlooked in a scramble.

Logan's prison cell hadn't been the only door on this short hallway, they were coming up to a second door on the right. Logan had intended to just pass it by on his way out but once in front of it he was forced to pause. He could now smell John was in there.

Tink wasn't happy with the delay. She kept glancing around them, her voice tight and worried as she complained, "I don't mean to be a pain, Mr. Logan, but we really need to keep moving. We have to find the others."

"I know that, kiddo. There's a guy in here that just might be able to help us do that."

Logan took the key card he had stolen from the guard and swiped it through the electronic keypad lock at the door, hoping for the best. He was rewarded with a beep and a loud click as the door lock disengaged. It seemed that so far luck was on their side.

Logan opened the door slowly, claws out on one hand, not being sure of what was on the other side. He knew John was in here but he couldn't be sure if he was guarded or not. There might even be booby traps of some kind.

The door opened into a single room, a holding area just as Logan's had been. There were no guards inside or even a torture chair, however, but there was a good sized pile of blankets balled up in a heap in the middle of the room. Logan could just make out one very pale arm sticking out, thrown a bit askew. It was accompanied by some soft snores. A closer look revealed what Logan already knew - John was buried there fast asleep and very comfortable.

John looked quite a bit different than when Logan had seen him last. As John had predicted on the train, Romulus had seen his beard shaved off and his head buzzed down to his scalp. He was still mostly undressed, revealing that more than his head had been shorn. The majority of his thick white body hair had been removed as well, making him look a lot more human than he had been on the train. If he were to go out in the snow now, he would surely freeze. All of this really changed how he looked. If not for the familiar scent, Logan might have thought he was looking at someone else.

"John?" Logan asked gently, not wanting to startle the sleeping man.

John's head snapped up at the unfamiliar voice, though his eyes, heavy with sleep, didn't fully open. With his head raised and his long hair now departed, he had an almost comical appearance - his long pointed ears were sticking out even more than before.

"Who're you?" John mumbled, not fully awake.

"It's Logan. We met on the train."

John squinted at him, waking up just a bit more. "Oh, yes. Yer outs now. Gonna go run free? Them trees ain't so far."

"How about you tag along with us?"

John blinked, considering it, but his voice was so terribly sad as he replied, "He'll just catch me and brings me back. He always does."

It broke Logan's heart to hear it, so he was quick to offer, "What if I told you I know a place where you can run all you want and he'll never catch you?"

"I'd say you was full of shit. I gone all the places and he always gits me, one way or the other. He's too smarts fer me."

"Well, it's true. I know just the place." This wasn't a lie. He really did know of just such a place and the thought of John there running free made Logan happier than he had felt in a long time. Long lost brother or not, this man had done nothing to him and didn't deserve to be locked up like this.

John frowned doubtfully but couldn't hide that he was interested. That didn't mean he fully trusted. "What's in it fer you?"

"I need you to help us get out of here. It's not like I've been here before but you have. We need an exit." He wanted more than that, he wanted Romulus' head on a plate if he could manage it, but for now he would happy with Remy and his kids outside.

"Roms don't know yer out?"

"Nope."

John just smiled at that. "A game then?"

"Something like that."

John rose to his hands and feet, shaking the remaining blankets from his body. He wasn't naked, he was still in the same style briefs he had been in on the train. Minus the fur, he looked half fed, weak. As the blankets fell, Logan also caught a whiff of flea powder. They had given him the full lost pet treatment it seemed. Adding to the insult of being handled much like a dog prone to stray, he was also chained to the wall with an ankle cuff just like the ones that had been used to keep Logan in his chair.

Logan looked at Tink who was still on his shoulder. "You still got them picks of yours?"

"Sure do."

Tink made her way over, giving the lock a peek. John watched her, his eyes curious but also a bit predatory. Being so small, Tink seemed more like something that should be chased and eaten than simply human.

Wolverine noticed and tried to distract John with questions as Tink worked John free. "Do you know a way out? Do you know where Romulus is?"

It worked, John was looking back at Logan now as he answered, "Changes with each place. He don't like to be too far from us prisoners, though."

Logan thought that was good to know, that meant maybe he and ole Romulus might get a chance to resume their conversation, preferably in a way that Romulus wouldn't like all that much. To that end, Logan pressed for more. "Do you know anything about him that can possibly help us?"

"Only that he's real old and really mean."

"That we've already figured out. How old do you think Romulus is?"

John shrugged. "A couple thousand, maybe more. His hair gots some white but not from Bree. He's truly old in every sense of the word. He says he's the Father of all of us and he just might be. He tells stories from way back, 'bout places even I never seen and I been all over. Supposedly he stood at the foot of the Cross and even went on a Crusade or two. He fought in many battles, was a prized warrior and claimed he was even Knighted once."

Logan snorted, not believing. It wasn't the advanced age, it was the way the stories seemed more to glorify the man than anything else. So typical of the overly narcissistic.

John kept speaking, "He don't ever stay in one place long, neither. He's always movin', always schemin'. Power and money and bossin' folks around. He carries the worries of a man now and we were never meant for this. He built an empire and now all he does is fret over it, 'specially now that he's under some kind of attack."

"Attack? What does that mean?" Logan question, more than a little interested. Any enemy of Romulus was a potential ally.

"Not sure who it is, but they keep comin', shuttin' down all of Rom's bases and stealin' all of his stuff, 'specially them trains he likes so well."

"Don't suppose they could be comin' right now?" It would be too much to hope for.

"Don't knows, don't much care. They kin haves it. Havin' no empire never meant nuthin' to me. Who wants all that stuff weighin' ya down nohow? I'd rather just have a full belly and nice long run in the woods, especially in spring when it all smells so nice and green."

So would Logan. He could certainly relate.

Their conversation was interrupted by the loud snap of John's ankle cuff snapping open. Logan was quick to smile at his diminutive companion. "Remy taught you good, kid."

Tink was beaming under the praise but was quick to clarify, "Actually it was Kimble that worked with me the most."

Wolverine grunted in surprise at that, he rarely thought of Kimble as actually having any real value. But time for that later. They needed to get moving.

Logan stood and offered his hand. "Now or never, John. What do you say? Seems to me you got nothing to lose."

John plopped one white hand into his. "Cain't say you don't gots a point."

The decision made, they made for the door, falling into a wordless single line formation as if they had drilled together for days. Some things just don't change, some training never forgotten. Tink followed third, Dewy's rat behind her. Logan was in front but glancing back, making sure she was coming along and kept marveling at how smart the rat was. The wee beast stayed right at her heels with no prompting. He had to guess that the rodent was well trained from being handled so much, but this was extraordinary. Was this all from Remy's training, or something else? Watching Tink work with Jones and also thinking about how bizarrely things had gone today, Logan couldn't help but guess that maybe there was a God after all. But then again, there was that pesky sense of humor of His to worry about. Who knew what else was going to happen to him before he left this place?

That odd question was about to be answered. They had taken no more than two steps down the outside hall before Logan halted them, popping out the claws on one hand. Logan had heard someone coming.


	2. Chapter 2

Author's note: Thanks, Liz, for pointing out to me that I had a couple of errors in the first chapter of this. Upon skimming it again, I found more like five or six, so I can only hope that the two you found were among the ones I fixed. Just goes to show that you can't proofread enough, kids. Oi vey... LOL. ~SQ

(Two)

Remy stood at his own door, tensed, his bo staff in his hands and ready.

The feral newcomer he had spotted through the detention cell cameras was slight but powerful and he took down the two outside guards with relative ease. He was taking no chances Gambit could see, the blood spattered on the walls attested to the fact these guys were not getting up any time soon if at all. Their attacker never hesitated and once the men were down he used one of their key cards to open the door. Suddenly he was right there inside, right in front of Remy who had no idea what to expect next. All Remy could do was hope this was good but prepare for the worst.

The kid was a feral and far younger than the cameras had told, he was eighteen at best. Thick black fur covered most of his body and he had a bushy tail to match. His face was clear though, his eyes bright and quick. He took in Gambit just standing there waiting and when he didn't recognize the Thief, came at him, claws out and long teeth flashing. Remy was ready for him but before he could do more than block a couple of quick swipes of Cristof's claws, a shout come from behind him.

"Hold up! Wait! Cristof!"

The kids clumsily parted behind Remy as Grace quickly plowed through them, her body colliding with that of the young man, not in battle but in something much more intimate. She jumped right up onto his hips, her legs tight around his waist, her arms slinging around his neck. He never got her name out, anything he might have said was drowned out in a passionate, searing kiss. He was receptive to her assault, using his large hands against her shapely bottom to lift her mouth more forcefully to his own as if he owned her. Their actions were too well rehearsed, the kiss was too deep, far too loving to be confused for anything but a happy reunion. They had danced this dance before in happier times.

"Geez, Grace," Hercules sneered just a bit too loudly. "Is there anyone in this place you haven't fucked?"

Remy turned and hissed at him to be quiet, the remark had been just too crude. While it was obvious that Grace knew this fellow quite intimately, they didn't know him at all or how their friendship had come about. Remy liked to reserve his judgements, even in spite of the fact this guy was pawing his charge all up and down. Remy had read in her personnel file that she had once belonged to another feral, the leader of her group on the streets. His exact name had never been revealed but that wasn't unusual. Most street people had criminal records and she would have wanted to protect him. Was this him? They couldn't be that lucky, right? It was all too surreal. Remy was willing to stand back and let this play out as long as this guy was someone they could use to get their asses out of here.

"Cristof!" Grace repeated as he finally freed her mouth, if not her body. He was still holding her easily against him as if she was only a small child. He sniffed at her and began to gently rub his face along her neck, scenting her and making sure all was well. She didn't mind a bit, even gasping out, "I haven't seen you since they came and took me away!"

His enthusiasm at their reunion was as great as hers. "My pretty little Lupa. I thought I'd never get to see you again! When I heard that kid say your name I knew it couldn't be anyone else."

Grace just laughed, amused by his continued attentions, though it was a bit embarrassing in front of a crowd. Her feet had yet to touch the ground. He continued to rub his face on her neck, though he growled a bit as he sniffed down her shirt. His eyes were hard as he looked up to meet her own. "He did hurt you."

"It was an accident," she hastily explained not wanting him to be mad. Her voice was merry and light, full of teasing as she added, "Plus he did apologize for it. He's a bit rougher around the edges than you, but I'll get him trained up right in time."

Cristof laughed at that and finally set her back down to the floor. He brushed her hair, straightening out his mess, his eyes still all over her face. As for the others in her group, he hadn't cared in the least that their vigorous greeting had been observed. He spoke to her as if they were still alone. "I'm sure you will but you still have to be careful. You know how dark we can be. You're playing with fire, girl. But then, no one ever came between you and anything you wanted. No one knows that better than me."

Remy pushed forward, but carefully. It was unclear if the boy intended to get Grace out of here or them all. He had to know for sure if this kid could even be trusted. Was this a trick? Romulus was a slippery dude and could be up to anything. "Can you help us get out of here?"

"That's the plan," Cristof answered quickly enough. His eyes ran over Grace's team leader, taking the taller man in and his nose twitched, marking him. Still, he didn't seem to be lying or hedging.

Cristof didn't immediately lead then out right away though. He turned instead to the computer that was on the nearby desk. Opening a cabinet door, he revealed a bank of drives in a tower there. He opened one of the drives and took out a disc that had been recording there and snapped it in two, destroying it. "Still gotta cover my ass," he said by way of explanation and then turned to the door. "Boss won't like it much if he sees me springing you out of here."

"You are not coming with us?" Grace questioned. If he was changing allegiances, there was no need to destroy the evidence of his crime against the boss.

He shook his head. "We Lupine are people of tooth and claw. I will never fit in anywhere else as well as I do here. This is who I am. Doesn't mean I can't do my girl a solid and get her outta here. "

"They will punish you," she protested, her eyes full of worry.

"Not if they don't find out." He saw her doubt and added, "I'll be fine. Now lets go get your kretch. He's this way. "

"What the heck is a kretch?" Hercules complained. He didn't understand the words they were using, though he couldn't hide a bit of jealousy of their familiarity. This guy had come out of nowhere and here was Grace, just letting him take over. Hercules didn't like it.

"Leave it," Gambit said to him, holding him back. He didn't fully trust the boy but he couldn't argue with his shine. If there was deceit in there, Cristof was hiding it well. Ever the gambler, Remy was willing to roll with it, for now.

Cristof took Grace by the hand and led her out as though she had been the only one standing in the hallway, though his eyes sharpened noticeably as they passed over Hercules. He hadn't liked the nasty comment any better than Remy had.

"I don't know that he's my kretch," Grace protested, keeping her voice low now that they were moving away from the cells.

He looked back at her with a wry grin. "Of course he is, didn't you hear the way he called for you? Even I never did that."

"How did you get here?" Grace asked as they moved along. Her voice was low whisper, she could see how he was checking every corner, his eyes never still. There were many guards here and he wasn't sure just how they were going to make it out.

"Daken came for me only days after you guys got taken," Cristof explained, his body twitchy and jumpy as he scented the air and listened to every sound. He was scanning the doors as they passed, checking the numbers. Looking. "It was the best thing for me, really. These people are my family now."

"Dey won't be after dis, fils," Remy cautioned. "Dey ain't gonna take too kindly to you 'elpin' us."

Cristof glanced back at him. "I'll take the punishment if I have to. I won't let them hurt my girl."

"Pretty sure she isn't your girl any more, dude," Hercules grumbled.

Cristof just shrugged. "She was mine for a year. She's family. I've only been here a few months. Plus once my girl, always my girl."

They hadn't gone far when Cristof stopped, his eyes rolling up to the ceiling. No alarm had sounded but the lights overhead flashed yellow in a pattern that was no accident. Cristof didn't explain but he slapped a hand at the next door they came to. "He's here."

"How do you know?"

"Because I was part of the group that offloaded him from the train," he explained quickly. His eyes were all apology as he next said to Grace, "I had no idea you were on that train. Trust me, things would have gone very differently if I had."

She was quick to forgive as always. "It's okay, you're helping us now."

"If he was here, there should be guards like we had," Hercules questioned, his question having merit. "Where are they?"

"Didn't you see the flashing yellow light? Romulus is pulling everyone out."

"We hear Romulus say he leavin' in de morning," Remy corrected.

"Romulus can say whatever he wants you to hear, those lights tell otherwise." Cristof gestured to the door again. "We don't have much time. This hall is just like the one you came from. He'll be all the way down to the end," Cristof advised Remy. "They expected him to be loud."

Remy stepped forward and opening the door, looked down a long hallway just as Cristof had predicted, his senses alert to any trap. He didn't like this. As Cristof had explained, this area was laid out similarly to the long room where the kids had been, only these cells had hard doors instead of energy barriers and were far less comfortable. The cells were just empty rooms with bare walls and no beds or toilets. They were simple cinder block rooms made for torture and nothing else. With Kyle being on the end, it meant the team would have to go all the way inside, something that would make them vulnerable. They could end up holed in here with nowhere to go.

Ever cautious, Remy used hand motions as they descended the hallway, spreading the kids out and putting them in protective layers between Kyle and the exit. He had no idea what shape Kyle was going to be in or how long it was going to take before they could get him on his feet if at all. If someone did come after them, he wanted to be ready.

He ended up leaving Hercules and Trigger closest to the door, then Aiden and Zander, his heaviest hitters, and then led the weaker kids the further down the hall as he went. He would have been at the main exit door himself, but he wanted a look at Kyle to see just how bad this was going to be. Cristof led them down to the end and pointed to the final room on the left.

Remy nodded, grateful yet still cautious of the newcomer. He was disturbed to see that the room opposite Kyle's wasn't a cell but was instead something like a small emergency room with an exam table and a crash cart off to one side. It made Remy sick to think of it, of someone being worked over in here and then revived again and again. It was barbaric. On the other hand it made Remy question if Cristof was telling the truth. If Romulus was bailing the facility as the boy had claimed, he was leaving an awful lot of equipment behind. This stuff wasn't cheap.

The door to Kyle's room was unlocked. Remy gently toed it open and Kyle was there as Cristof had promised. It was also as bad as Gambit had feared.

Kyle's room was as spare as the others had been in this section with the exception of the two short stacks of blocks that his chains were connected to. Kyle was lying motionless on the floor, still chained but at least he wasn't stuck on his knees anymore. Daken had left the slack in the chains so Kyle was now lying flat on the floor, some small mercy. Of course the cuffs remained locked in place around his wrists so it was just as well that Remy had come all the way down. The locks would have to be picked and he was the most qualified person to do it. The room stank of sweat, agony and burnt things. It was all Remy could do not to gag.

Grace rushed past Remy the moment Kyle's door was opened and she was down on her knees in front of the stricken man, her arms going around him immediately. Or as much as she could, Kyle's back was black with ash and some of it fell away from her handling him. She could see that some big patches there were still red and inflamed even though the worst of it had scabbed over. It was hard to find a spot that hadn't been injured in some way, but she did her best to offer him comfort without putting her full weight on him. She couldn't help but gasp his name. "Kyle!"

Kyle wouldn't look at her but he began to sob deep and low, a wretched growl of protest from all the abuse that had been done to him. He started shaking again and turned his head away from her, feebly trying to crawl away like he was too filthy to be touched. He still had blood smeared on his face from what they had fed him. The metal bowl was right there, shining as if in confirmation of his monstrousness. He had licked it mostly clean in his haste to feed.

Grace didn't even notice the bowl, but if she had she wouldn't have cared. The first time she had ever seen Kyle he had been face first in a man's belly, feasting on his liver. The bowl was nothing. She stopped him from retreating too far and was quick to whisper to him, "I heard what you said, but there was no need. I already forgave you the moment you ran away from me. I love you, Kyle, I truly do. I thought you were gone just now and it was the worst feeling in the world."

Kyle groaned and turned back to face her, unable to adequately articulate his relief and joy at her words any other way. He couldn't believe she meant all that she had said but it was nice to at least have heard it. He leaned into her touch, his cheeks wet with tears.

Meanwhile Gambit had walked around Kyle, taking his gloves off thoughtfully as he looked over the locks, the Thief in him skillfully assessing their difficulty. They didn't appear to be anything he would have to worry about. He crouched down and got to work without commenting on what was being said though he could hear them easily. He was giving Kyle and Grace their moment though he was painfully aware of the time ticking away.

He did look up when he saw that Tilda had followed him partway inside, a trembling hand over her nose and mouth. She was stronger now from having drunk the water Remy had given her but she was still frail. The room smelled of torture, something she had never experienced in her short life, and she was trying to be so brave. "He didn't deserve this," she whispered just loud enough for Remy to hear.

Gambit just smiled at her, trying to reassure her. As if anything could make this better. "He goan be just fine, chere, je promets. Don' you fret."

She nodded at him but some of the innocence had gone from her eyes, replaced with anger. This was something Remy never wanted for the kids on his squad but was probably unavoidable given the lives they seemed to lead. He couldn't help but wonder, had she fully understood what Romulus had so cruelly aired over the intercom? She was so very young. All of Kyle's sexual secrets had been revealed and she would never be able to unhear what had been said any more than she could unsee what she was looking at now.

Tilda wasn't the only one taking a peek. Izzie was right behind her, holding back tears at the sight of Kyle. She had always been afraid of him but it was less now, Remy could see. He wondered how many of the kids would rethink what they had thought of him before seeing him like this. Now she felt truly sorry for him because she was seeing him as a person for the first time. It was significant both for her and for the others, something Remy had longed for. The tide was turning in Kyle's favor. It was just a shame that it had taken this for him to earn his rightful place in their eyes.

Remy placed a hand on one of Kyle's own, not liking how cold it was. He let slip a bit of sympathetic empathy, just enough to let the boy know he was sincere as he promised, "Goan get you outta 'ere, fils. Just give me one more minute."

Kyle's bloodshot and wearied eyes met his Team Leader's, holding more than simple gratitude in them. He knew he looked bad, smelled worse, and didn't deserve the time it was taking to rescue him. He still couldn't quite believe they were actually here willingly, doing this thing for him. They were certain to leave him behind once they got him free. It was impossible to even think he still actually belonged to them. Why would they want to keep someone so vile and diseased as him?

"You ain't goan be left behind," Remy assured, his enhanced empathy and ability to read shines giving him the gist of what Kyle was thinking. "You still one of us, always will be. Ain't no one among us innocent enough to be any throwin' stones yo' way."

Remy got the first lock undone and he rubbed Kyle's bloody wrist letting him know it was free. Kyle felt it and flexed his hand, a cry of misery escaping him. The shoulder that belonged to that arm was still dislocated and all wrong, bent awkwardly.

"Get TrueBlood and Aiden," Remy gently ordered to Tilda, whose face had gone paler still at Kyle's sharp outcry of pain.

She left and TrueBlood came as ordered. Aiden was right behind him. Aiden was a bit puzzled as to why he had been asked for until he saw Kyle's dislocated shoulder. Both Siskans had been given extensive medical training and retained it best because of their superior memory. Kimble would have helped with this but because of his hands, was unable. Still, Aiden verbally walked Remy through the procedure once Kyle's other arm was unlocked and thankfully the two of them got the bad shoulder popped back in with little fuss.

Kyle growled in pain the moment they snapped his shoulder back in, showing just enough fang that TrueBlood backed off some, his eyes wide with fear.

Remy saw it. "Get on back 'ere. De boy can recover on his own but we ain't got de time. Give 'im some blood so we can bounce on outta 'ere."

TrueBlood stood where he was, shaking his head. "Hell, no! He'll fucking eat me!"

Kyle heard that and shuddered, turning his head away. "Mrr! Leave me!"

"No chance," came Remy's quick reply. He glared at TrueBlood. "Now, sil vous plait. We ain't leavin' nobody behind."

Grace smiled up at TrueBlood, giving him her most persuasive grin. "Besides, he only eats bad guys. Unless you have something you want to confess...?"

TrueBlood remained unconvinced by her attempt at humor, but that didn't mean he got his way. The delay had worried Zander enough that he had poked his head into the room. One glance and Zander gave TrueBlood a rough, impatient shove forward with his shoulder, mindful of his poor ruined hands. He snarled in his rough, gravelly voice, "Stop bein' such a fuckin' pussy! Do whatcher told, we ain't gots no time fer yer bullshit!"

Trapped in between the feral ruin on the floor and Zander's powerful menacing presence, TrueBlood stumbled to a knee in fright and did as he was bid. He always carried a claw shaped prick on his key chain and he used it now to cut his thumb, squeezing it to drip a few drops of blood into Kyle's upturned mouth. His hands were shaking, his resentful, terrified eyes more on Zander than Kyle.

He wasn't the only one watching, Remy was glaring at Zander himself. Yes, this had needed moving along, but the Thief would have preferred TrueBlood to find his own courage. Zander had been just too rude.

Zander didn't care. As soon as he saw the boy obey he retreated back out into the hallway, resuming the protective position he had been in before. Only Remy knew the Siskan had been more bluff than anything, his shine was streaked with real pain and he wasn't as strong as he had looked.

The blood Kyle had drunk worked quickly. It didn't cure all of his ills, but it was enough that he could make his feet with Remy helping him up. Grace took Kyle's weight and helped him to walk, allowing the Thief to go back up front, reassembling the kids into order as he went. His eyes were hard as they passed over Zander, but the Punisher didn't flinch, he just stood his ground and waited for Aiden to join him before taking his own spot in line.

Remy took the lead position at the front and looked back behind him, assessing his team before stepping out of the door. They looked ready enough, though they were all certainly afraid.

"We're good, boss," Hercules promised, seeing some hesitation in Remy's eyes. "Let's do this."

It warmed Remy to hear it and he turned back to the task at hand. "On t'ree..."

He finished the count and dared to crack open the door. So far it was still all clear out there and they carefully filed out into the hallway. While this was lucky, it was beginning to nag at Remy that perhaps they were being allowed to escape. Romulus had been more than capable of containing them before so why were they so lightly guarded now?

As if reading his mind, Aiden softly spoke, "Zere wasz more guardsz on ze way down. Szumptin' isz wrong."

"I told you Romulus was pulling everyone out," Cristof repeated. "If you're going to get out, it has to be now."

The conversation ended as a pair of Lupine boys suddenly burst from a door. Two youths, feral and furred, but not there to stop them from escaping it seemed. It was more like they had been trying to catch up to the others and wandered through the wrong door. They hadn't expected the prisoners to be free any more than the prisoners had expected to be caught so there was a brief pause as everyone just looked at each other in surprise. Remy recovered first and was on the first man, using his staff to knock him down and stunning him with a sound thwack to the head. The second kid tried to turn tail and run but Hercules took him down, flinging him effortlessly onto the wall like a child's plaything. He slumped to the floor without a sound, sloppy broken.

"You should kill them," Cristof advised coldly, puzzled when the pair seemed happy to just have knocked them out.

"Dese yo' own guys," Remy questioned, his eyes squinting with suspicion.

"I've never met them, so what do I care?" came Cristof's offhand reply. "They'll warn anyone who comes down here."

"Leave dem," Remy ordered, ignoring the advice. "But strip dem down, see if anyt'ing dey got can fit Kyle. Quick quick now."

Aiden did as his leader had bid, stripping off a shirt and handing it over. Kyle blinked up at him, weary yet a bit grateful for the consideration. His own nudity never bothered him but there were young girls here. He slid the shirt over his shoulders but winced when it touched the ruined skin on his back. At least it was large and loose on him, it wouldn't chafe.

Grace looked on, her face dubious. "He's never going to get those pants over his legs."

"Just our luck," Trigger said, "This guy wears boxers."

"It'll do. Make it quick."

Once Kyle was dressed it was time to go. They had tarried here too long already in Remy's opinion. Remy inched up to the corner and took a peek down the next hallway. All was quiet. That should have been comforting but the lack of plausibility of it just made him feel worse. Where was everybody?

Gambit gave one last look behind him at his crew, making sure they were all in line again before heading out. He caught Cristof checking his watch.

"We 'oldin' you up from sumptin' important?" he questioned in irritation. He really wanted to trust this guy on account of Grace, but damn, he hardly knew this guy.

"You saw the flashing yellows, right?"

"Oui...?" Remy replied, the odd response to his question making him that much more nervous.

"I told you that signal meant Romulus is bugging out. You didn't think we've just been this lucky not to run into any guards?"

"Mighta been nice you tellin' us dat just a bit earlier, mon ami."

"Yeah, well, I didn't know it would take you this long to get your man."

Remy squinted, not sure what that meant. "Dis place ain't gonna blow is it?"

Cristof actually laughed at that. "No, but I'd really like to not miss my train."

"You're not still planning on leaving with him are you?" Grace asked in amazement. "Why help us then?"

"Romulus is my family now, but that doesn't mean I'll stand by and see you in a cage, girl."

"So where Romulus at now?" Remy wanted to know.

"Most of the main personnel will have gone topside to leave by train, but if I had to guess Romulus will be the last to leave. That means he's likely to be in the hanger with the heavy equipment. He's got a couple of helicopters in there."

"He got planes, too?"

"Not really, but he'll be having Hans – that's his teleporter – moving out Romulus' most private stuff by truck from there."

Remy was torn. Should they try to stop Romulus or just bail out of the nearest exit. Chances were that if Romulus was leaving he was taking Logan with him. Why drag Logan all this way just to leave him behind? He also hadn't missed the fact that while the most of the Red Team was accounted for, they still had people missing. Remy wasn't going to let them go without a fight.

"De 'anger. You know where dat is?"

Cristof nodded. "I'll take you there but when he goes, I'm going with him."

"Deal," Remy agreed, just to have the man as his guide.

They moved on.

Julien followed the others, resuming his position near the rear and trying not to get left behind. Kyle and Grace were just ahead of him and as he walked the boy couldn't help but see how bad off Kyle was. Grace was still propping him up as he stumbled along. This wasn't the first time Julien had seen someone badly abused or even killed, but he would never get used to it. Jason Frost had drilled into him the idea that suffering was a justified part of mutant life but the time Julien had spent with the X-men recently had changed some of that. He had been sheltered and away from the constant violence that had been such a big part of the life at Twilight. What he was seeing now bothered him more than it would have just a short time ago and for a moment he began to fear that the X-men were making him soft. This was a rude reality check.

Seeing Grace struggling some to keep Kyle moving, Julien's first inclination was to help her out but then he could still hear an echo of Frost's voice in his head saying that Kyle's sin was as obvious as his feral skin. Julien had been well aware that Kyle was living in the jail and that he was trouble. His confession to his own sexual perversion didn't help his case any. Jason Frost would have argued that today Kyle had gotten everything he deserved, but then the next minute Julien could hear Brother Asher's voice interrupting, telling him that God forgives all. Kyle's efforts at reformation had to count for something not to mention that only just a few short hours ago, Kyle had come to Julien's defense when his own team mates had been picking on him out in the woods. It was enough that Julien finally crept up to give Grace that assist.

Grace rewarded him with a smile when she felt him take up Kyle's other shoulder, relieving some of the weight. "Hey, thanks. I had no idea someone so skinny could be so heavy."

Her gratitude warmed him and Julien realized that it was true after all what Asher said, that helping was its own reward. Kyle grumbled a thanks himself, and was inspired by the gesture of friendship to try harder. They were moving faster now and keeping up more easily.

"Hey, something's not right with Dewy," TrueBlood called out from the middle. "He looks stoned. Maybe it's from the stuff they used to dope us up."

Remy paused to look back at the red headed boy, not needing any more trouble right now. Dewy seemed dazed and glassy eyed though it wasn't slowing him down much. While a nuisance, it was also a welcome sight. Remy could tell by his shine what it was and couldn't help but smile gratefully. "Leave him be. He's wit Jones now. Dis a good t'ing and about damn time."

"He's freaking me out."

"Dis what all dat drillin' we do is about. Gotta learn to use all of your talents if you want a good team," Remy explained to TrueBlood before turning to Dewy and snapping his fingers, trying to get some of Dewy's attention. "Where Jones at, Dewy?"

"He's close and getting closer," Dewy replied, his voice dreamy and distant. "He's with Mr. Logan, I think. Tink is there, too."

Dewy had no more than answered when the group heard soft footfalls coming from around the next bend. There was a soft little squeak and then a flash of white as the rat himself appeared, sprinting happily towards his master. Logan's head came next, peeking around the corner as he teased, "Good, yer here. Saves me the trouble of bustin' yer useless asses out."

"See you made it out in one piece," Remy answered back, his grin wide. Things were finally looking up.

"Yeah, thanks to yer Rat Fairy," Logan replied, jerking a thumb at Tink who had followed him around the bend.

Tink had run right to Dewy the moment she saw him, her usual person of transport, but she did look back at Logan and complained at his joke, her eyes merry, "Hey!"

Remy smiled at Logan's humor but he can't help but be a lit bit proud. The kids had done so well without having to be asked and coached much. "Remind me to t'ank you fo' showin' us a lovely time at yo' cabin."

"You're always telling me how you love surprises."

"Aiden isz blaming ze browniesz, me," the smaller Siskan joked, happy enough to play along and lighten the mood a bit. " 'E hope zat whatever Keemble put in zem to make me dream disz shit wear off szo 'e can wake up in 'isz bed."

"Wait? There were brownies?" Grace chimed in. "We never get brownies!"

"We make it out of here, brownies fo' everybody," Remy promised.

Logan wasn't interested in chocolate flavored snacks. He was giving Kyle a quick look and sniff, trying to see just how fucked up he might be. Kyle was crouched low, giving Grace a break while the others caught up. He was panting and shaking still, a bit of bloody drool leaking out of one corner of his mouth. His eyes were bright though and warily watchful for anyone coming. Not bad for a guy who had been used so badly but Logan could guess that TrueBlood might have had a thing or two to do with that. He was impressed with how well Kyle had handled himself then and now.

_Blood of my blood_, Logan couldn't help but think. _He is as much my son as Carter. _He found himself asking, "You whole, kid?"

Kyle's tawny eyes met his own, absurdly grateful that Logan even asked. "Mrr! Good!"

Remy nodded at Logan. "What about you? You okay, homme?"

"Good as I'll ever be I guess. We should get moving."

"Dis everyone, no?" Remy asked uncertainly but yet hopeful, just wanting out. "Don't suppose you seen Gryfon?"

"Seriously?" Logan grumbled, more upset at the idea that Warren had been brought along then by the fact that he might get left behind.

"Cyke make me bring 'im. Saw 'im run in de woods, 'e might not even be 'ere wit us."

"What does he look like?" Cristof wanted to know.

"Just like 'is name, mon ami. Lion body, wings and feathers. A face to wilt flowers."

"The only guy with wings was that guy," Cristof answered, jerking a clawed thumb in Zander's direction. "I know the guys who moved the rest. They would have mentioned it. Plus it wasn't in the prisoners' manifest, I checked the computer logs before I came down for Grace."

"We de only prisoners 'ere? Mebbe 'e collectin' more mutants like us to train?" Remy found himself asking, thinking back on what Aiden had heard Daken say. If there were others here to be rescued, they should at least try.

Cristof looked at him like he was crazy. "Romulus only takes Lupines, he wouldn't be interested in anybody else."

"Daken say otherwise," Remy challenged.

"Daken loves to lie, especially if he thinks he can get a rise out of you. It's just you guys, that's it."

Remy was doubtful, it wasn't like his kids were without promise to someone willing to exploit them, but Cristof's shine was steady and sure. He wasn't lying. Whatever Daken and Romulus had been after here, it wasn't Remy's team, or anyone besides Kyle and Logan.

"Who's yer friend?" Logan growled, looking at Cristof suspiciously now. It hadn't occurred to him right away that this guy was a traitor to Romulus.

"Grace's ex-squeeze. Yours?" Remy countered, gesturing at John. They hadn't been introduced.

"Claims to be my brother."

"Small world, innit?" Remy teased. Really, what more was there to add to all this?

"Cute. Lets keep moving."

"The hanger is this way," Cristof directed, gesturing the way Logan had come.

"Espere," Remy interrupted. "If dis all of us, den mebbe it best we just make fo' de woods instead. Why fight when dere ain't no need? We got hurt people."

"What are you talking about?" Logan questioned.

Remy took a moment to brief Logan on their possible options. They could go to the hanger as Cristof still wanted or make for the stairs and try to run for it. Remy was leaning more towards just sneaking out. With all of their wounded, they were in no position to bully their way past Romulus himself.

Logan squinted at Cristof. "You said he's got choppers in there, right?"

"Yeah, big ones. Military transports."

"I'll just bet he's got more than choppers in there," Logan replied, looking pointedly at Remy. "He's got the Dragon. I heard Daken say so."

" 'E coulda been foolin' you."

"That's just it. He didn't even know I was listening."

Remy just shook his head. " 'E could never fly it from de cabin."

"Didn't need to. He's got a teleporter. He just moved it instead."

"Hans..." Cristof breathed in agreement. "That guy can 'port a 747 if he had to."

Remy hesitated. Was this actually possible or was Logan making up excuses to challenge the big bad who just pissed him off? If it was true, there was no way the Thief wanted to leave his baby behind. That ship was his life now. It would be like losing one of his kids.

"We gotta check it out, boss," Hercules was saying over Remy's shoulder.

"You 'ave any idea 'ow dangerous it is? We could all die," the Thief countered, but he was still undecided. This wasn't an easy decision.

"That's true," Logan agreed. "But then the cold and the trees could take us. We have no idea where we are. Guys like this don't put their bases out in the open, they keep them isolated. With the Dragon, we could fly outta here. I don't know about you, but I'd rather go out with a fight than to die runnin' when I didn't have to."

Remy bristled a bit, not sure of that was a roundabout way of calling him a coward. He wasn't craven by far, it was just that having these kids were making think on more practical terms than he would have otherwise.

"If you guys are talking about some kind of plane and Romulus did have it, the hanger is where he'd keep it," Cristof answered. "It's the biggest room in the house. Three flights up."

"You know we gotta..." Hercules continued to persuade. "We'll be fine. Mr. Logan is here. He can fight through anything."

While Remy appreciated the sentiment, he knew otherwise. Wolverine was strong, Wolverine was wise. But he wasn't invincible.

"We could just go to the hanger and scope it out," Grace offered as a compromise.

Remy could live with that. Three flights up was half the distance to the door, it was on the way. "Bien. Just take us a little peek-see. Den we decide."

"Good boy," Logan agreed and turned, moving the way Cristof was directing.

The others followed, reforming their line. John kept pace but his curiosity had him slowing down enough to let Kyle catch up to him. John had slept through the terrible broadcast, but the boy's scent was enough that he wanted to look him over some. His personal scent aside, Kyle's claws and face were enough that John could suspect he was some kind of family. The curiosity was mutual. Grace and Julien were still helping Kyle walk but he was sniffing loudly, just as interested about John.

Just ahead of them, Tink was back on Dewy's shoulder where she belonged and much more comfortable. Their eyes meet and they know they were equally worried about each other. "Thanks for looking after my rat," Dewy said, but it meant much more. He was beyond grateful to see her safe and sound.

"Any time," she replied, her wide smile letting him know that she felt the same.

They weren't the only ones feeling much more relaxed and safe. Hercules and the others were more focused now that they were back on the move and not just sitting in a holding cell waiting for something to happen. They were in perfect formation as they moved, just as they had worked on time and time again at home. It had become instinctual, the way it should be. They were all watching each other's back.

Logan kept looking back at the kids all the same, concerned. In spite of being so careful, they were being much too loud for a place as full of ferals as this. They could be overheard by anyone with enhanced hearing. They were all wearing soft soled boots and some of the kids had covered their mouths as they ran, trying to silence their noise but it wasn't enough. There wasn't anything he could do about it so he kept any complaints to himself. Something to work on back home – assuming they ever made it back.

"How do we even know Grace's guy is leading us the right way?" Trigger complained mournfully, thinking this was still taking to long. He was joking but he still meant it. "We don't even know where we are."

"We szix level down from ze train," Aiden tossed out confidently enough.

"How would you know?" Logan questioned.

Aiden just smiled. "Kept on eye on ze trail all ze way down," he replied, referencing to Logan's earlier lessons about how to track in the snow. "Me and Zandair bot' awake when zey bring usz down."

Logan was happy to hear that. "Exits?"

"Zey bring usz down by ze stairsz. Double szentry each level, but I did szee elevator doors on szome of ze turns. Make szensze it run all ze way down. Not all of usz walk, eh? Gotta be a szupply line."

Cristof finally halted them at the elevator doors.

Dewy eyed the elevator suspiciously. "Are you sure this is a good idea? What if the power goes out and we get trapped inside?"

"I'm pretty sure Romulus pays his bill," Hercules teased, not too kindly. "We've got wounded. You want to be the one carrying them up the stairs?"

They all filed into the elevator, grateful that it was a service car and generous in size. They were now a rather large group. Logan grunted when he spied a red button marked Hanger. "Looks promisin.' "

"Probably need a key fo' dat," Remy protested, but rolled his eyes when Logan scowled at him. "Jus' sayin'."

"How about we take our chances?"

Remy didn't argue, he just pressed the button. They could be arguing who had rank here in this caper, but Remy was more concerned about getting out in one piece than he was about who was in charge. As long as they were moving up and out, he could ride this out easily enough.

The doors closed and the car began to rise.

"See, no key," Logan grumbled back, but his eyes were laughing just a little.

Remy grunted a short surrender, but next groaned a bit as soft music began to play, a little Muzak to ride to your doom by.

"You'd think... with alla the money Romulus paid... fer this dump he'd at least... get decent elevator music," Kimble complained, rolling his eyes towards the overhead speakers. He had an extensive CD collection back home.

Remy laughed a little, surprised that Zander had retreated enough to let Kimble speak. He was glad for it, it meant that Kimble was okay in spite of the pain.

"We could alwaysz szing, my luv," Aiden offered, also pleased that the Punisher had retreated for the moment. If Kimble was joking he couldn't be feeling that bad.

"Let's not," Hercules argued, uneasily. He was creeped out by Kimble's changing voices. It was just too weird and something he doubted he would ever get used to.

Grace laughed, unafraid of her teammate's gruffness, and began to sing, quiet at first but then louder as she quoted familiar Bob Dylan, "._..'There must be some kind of way out of here, said the Jester to the Thief'_."

"Supposed to be de Joker," Remy corrected, willing to play along. He was happy that she could maintain some of her humor in this tense situation, she had used her codename on purpose. Better than going out screaming.

The ride was blessedly short and the doors opened up onto a short hallway. They stepped out cautious to a fault, but all they saw was a single large door at the end. The door had glass windows and Remy sidled up to them carefully, unsure if there might be guards on the other sides. It was still too freaky that they had met such little resistance after having broken out of the detention area. This place should be crawling with people looking for them and yet it was eerily empty. Something wasn't right.

"Are we clear or not?" Logan growled impatiently.

"De window small, hard to tell. I see de Dragon just like you say and two big military choppers - big fuckers wit de double blades. Didn't know dey make choppers dat big..."

"Chinooks most likely," Logan interrupted. "Makes ya wonder where he got the money."

"He also got a big semi truck and too many people 'tween dem and us." He could now see why they had met such little resistance, all the bad guys seemed to be mustered in this one place waiting just for them. It wasn't out of the question that Romulus had anticipated this move. There was no need to block their way to the outside exits when Romulus knew they were heading here anyways. "Got some dogs, too."

Aiden groaned aloud, voicing his disappointment. Logan put a hand on his shoulder in encouragement but said nothing. Aiden's aversion to canines was something that had been kept private between them and Logan wasn't going to air out that grievance now. He had bigger foes on his mind.

"Is Romulus there?" Logan wanted to know, barging rudely forward.

"Don't know what de fool look like," Remy protested but Logan was there anyways, pushing him out of the way.

"That's him," Logan confirmed. "Daken, too."


	3. Chapter 3

Author's note - I will apologize now for any wonkiness here and in the next chapter. I don't feel I write fight scenes terribly well but sometimes ya just gotta, you know? Just to get you from here to there, lol. Hopefully it won't feel too disjointed or weird.

(Three)

"That sick fuck needs to die," Hercules hissed even though the man had done him no real personal harm, there were others here far more deserving of their revenge. He expected more agreement from the crowd, but even Kyle kept his quiet. Truth was, this was personal to Hercules even though he himself had only been modestly affected. He was protective of this group. It was something he had felt ever since he and most of them had been freed from Jason Frost. In Hercules' eyes Romulus was no different than Frost had a been, a sick idealist who was trying to force his own twisted agenda on people who were better off without it. Hercules would gladly see him punished for it, by his own hands if his luck was good.

Logan growled for silence and placed his ear against the door, hoping his enhanced hearing might let him in on what the conversation going on in there was about. He could hear well enough to figure out that it was about them and the Dragon. Someone was protesting that they hadn't been able to get past the safeties on the Dragon and there was some real concern that the craft would have to be left behind. Logan thought that was good news and he wasn't about to give them a chance to have a second crack at it.

"Then let's go in there and beat their asses," Hercules suggested a bit too eagerly. He was just a tad overconfident from the ease of their escape.

"Right," Trigger quipped in response. "..because we've done so well so far."

"We're here, aren't we? We can't just let them go," Hercules continued to argue. "Besides our ride is in there."

Logan just growled at their noise, taking charge. "Nobody's lettin' anyone do anything. But ya gotta do this sort of thing smart."

"What's yo' play, patron?" Remy questioned without argument. He might be a Team Leader on this run, but he was more than willing to defer to Logan's greater combat knowledge if it got more of the kids out of here alive than dead. Now that he had seen the Dragon for himself, there was no way he was leaving without it.

Logan was quick to reply. He had been planning missions for years and this one was no different. He was confident as he suggested, "I say we put me and you, Aiden, Hercules and Trig out front, the rest bring up the rear. They can back us up if need be while still gettin' the wounded to the Dragon at the same time. Once you get the wounded in, you hold the Dragon with all you got. Don't let nobody in that don't belong there."

"Works fer me," Zander growled in agreement. Now that they were back on the job, he had ousted the Kimble with little fuss. Zander might not be able to use his hands, but he could do his part to get his group safely on board the Dragon while let the others did the rest.

"I'm with the front line," Cristof demanded, stepping forward. "I'll help you guys get clear, but Romulus is my ride."

"Those guys are bad," Grace insisted, still unhappy with his decision. She couldn't understand his loyalty, not after what Romulus had done to Kyle. "Stay with us."

Cristof was adamant, shaking his head. "Can't, babe. My place is still with him, even if he punishes me. I've never felt at home as much as I have with these guys."

Logan was looking Cristof up and down now with a disdainful sniff. Even he couldn't figure why the kid would trust Romulus any further than he could be thrown. It was creepy and not all that dissimilar to Julien's faith in Jason Frost even after the kid had seen the man kill people. What was it with these freaks? How did they get people under their sway so easily? He would never get it. "No offense, kid. But I don't know you. If yer still on his side, I can't have you anywhere that yer gonna betray us."

"He's fine," Grace assured firmly and with authority. "Let him help."

"He been straight wit us so far," Remy also added, though he wasn't as certain about the kid as Grace was. He hadn't lied, but no one could predict what he might do once he was back in Romulus' sight. Not that it mattered, once they passed through the door, any element of surprise they had was going to be blown anyway.

Logan nodded with a grunt, reluctantly taking their word for him, but he wasn't happy. "It's your funeral. John, you and Kyle help Zander and the other kids get to the Dragon safe."

"Right," John agreed, but he clearly didn't think Kyle was up to it. Most of his injures had healed but he was still pretty weak. Zander wasn't in any better shape but he could at least walk or run on his own power, if nothing else.

Remy knew it as well and he ordered, "Jules, you go wit Kim, too. Make sure he get dere in one piece."

Julien nodded, happy to help out in a way that didn't require a fight. One look told him he could never handle any of these guys, no matter how much training he'd had. Keeping Kimble safe was something he would do gladly, the Siskan had always treated him fairly. Of course Kimble wasn't really there at the moment, but Julien would do his best anyways.

Before they went in Remy had some last words for the group as a whole. "Do what you need to, stay tight," he advised. "De only way all of us walk outta 'ere is if we all got each other's backs. Leave yo' petty differences at de door, now. Nobody left behind, comprenez?"

"Aye, Captain," Grace was quick to reply, her eyes all on the Dragon. She couldn't get there fast enough.

Julien listened to this, but he couldn't help but doubt. If it came down to it, would the others have his back or not? He doubted it. He would be on his own, he had accepted this a long time ago. It was just as well that most of the guys who disliked him most were going in the opposite direction, they wouldn't be put to the test. In theory he wouldn't have to worry about some kind of friendly fire incident, intentional or not. He was a bit shaky from being drugged, but the adrenaline was getting him going at the moment. He was ready.

"Great. Let's just get this done," Wolverine growled by way of starting this and after a short three count, cracked the door.

The door opened much more quietly than Logan had expected but it didn't matter. As he had feared, too many of the Lupine had enhanced hearing and at least half the group that was standing by one of the helicopters turned towards their noise, including Daken and Romulus. He was dismayed to see his half brother Sabretooth was also standing there among them as well. This wasn't going to be an easy fight.

Romulus stood there, a perplexed frown on his face. He was actually surprised to see them, but not for the reasons Logan or Remy might have expected. "You're early," he had to say, though if it was in complaint, it was unclear.

"We're quick learners!" Hercules shouted out in a fast reply before anyone else could. He was ready for a real fight, his fists twitching in anticipation.

"More like you had help," Romulus replied, his eyes all on Cristof.

Remy moved in quickly, automatically reaching for his retractable bo staff, ready. His eyes were all over the room and he was relieved beyond words to see that yes, the Dragon was still sitting seemingly untouched in the corner. They hadn't gotten inside while he and the kids were getting ready for this fight.

The hanger was huge and deep, it was now open to the sky and the snow, the roof had been retractable and there was nothing standing in the way of either the large Chinook helicopters or the Dragon from taking off. Remy wasted no time, he signaled to the group and they split as he had suggested earlier, the weaker kids heading for the parked craft. Wolverine may have wanted a fight, but Remy's first priority was getting the kids out.

As Remy feared, Wolverine had no such cares. He was at a full sprint now, heading for the group of men who had offended him so. Cristof and Aiden were right behind him. A cadre of Romulus' men rushed to face them, a second headed for the kids who had rushed towards the Dragon.

"Clark!" Romulus barked. "Your dogs!"

Everything slowed down then, at least it did for Gambit. This was how it was in a fight. You never saw the whole room, just these strobe like flashes of things going on around you. Remy hadn't hesitated but had moved towards the Dragon to intercept the men headed towards his precious kids. He charged and tossed a small volley of energized ball bearings to scatter or at least startle the pursuers into a more workable group. It didn't work. Although the bearings sparked and banged quite satisfactorily, these men had been warned in advance and hadn't been scared by the noise.

No worries, Remy had plenty of other tricks in hand. His bo staff was eager and ready for action and he was already striking the nearest of Romulus' minions, all the while seeing the look of dismay on Aiden's face as six large dogs came charging out of the back of the nearest Chinook. It was difficult to classify what breed they might be - somewhere between Rottweiler, Hound of Hell and just plain Loud and Scary. They were huge and ugly regardless of what pedigree they might claim as heritage. Gambit was fully aware of the specialized training the Siskan had recently put himself through to overcome his fierce aversion to dogs. He could only pray it would be enough.

Then all of that was lost as Gambit collided with the men who had unpleasant things in mind for the kids stumbling towards the Dragon. The fight was swift –smack, thwack with his long staff – and all Remy was left with was the satisfaction that while Romulus took great pride in being Lupine, most of his minions weren't worth the fur they were wrapped in.

The momentary pause between the first round of Gambit's humiliating punishment to the hired help gave him another quick view of Aiden. The Siskan had successfully wrestled two of the dogs down to the floor. He was bleeding but the animals weren't. Twitching legs and heaving sides showed they were stunned, not dead. The other four had come but then two dropped like stones in mid stride and then slid bonelessly past a bewildered Aiden. Remy tracked their movement and caught a quick vision of Dewy standing there, petrified, his face flush with fear.

"Sleep," Gambit thought he had heard Dewy speak, but couldn't be sure. It might have been just in his shine, but it didn't matter. The training had worked, both of them had proven themselves in that moment, the Siskan and the child who was now a man.

The blow that next knocked Remy to his knees was a shock and a just reward for his inattention. This he hadn't considered – _just how does Cyke track all of us on the field? _Maybe he didn't because this was the result. The second wave of Romulus' men had caught up with the Thief while his eyes had left them and they had been quick to take advantage of it. Lucky the shot Gambit had taken to the head had only dazed him, not knocked him out. Unfortunately there were four guys here now, not two like the last time.

Staff flying, Remy managed to knock the first two comers off their feet while he regained his own. It might have looked as though he was flailing the staff around but he was as sure as he had ever been when he swung it wide to catch two more of them around the face, just as he took another punishing punch to the back of his head. He spilled forward clumsy now, hands out this time, dropping the staff and grabbing the first things that fell into his waiting fingers. Cotton shirt in one hand of goon one, metal chain necklace of goon two in the other. He charged both items with kinetic energy and then quickly ducked his head, his eyes closed to avoid the worst of the explosions he had triggered.

He was rewarded both with screaming and the smell of cooked flesh as the objects ignited and then exploded, only his quick reflexes had him moving aside fast enough to avoid the second wave of falling persons. He didn't like to use such sometimes deadly force but he was outnumbered here.

Fierce growling made him open his eyes and he saw that the remaining two dogs had turned traitor and were now on the last of the two men that had circled him. Dewy was behind them, still stiff with terror, but waving his hands out mystically in front of him as if using an unseen Playstation playpad to orchestrate his canine weapons as effectively as if he was in their very skin. Remy had once used his empathy to dissipate the anger of a couple of watch dogs in order to avoid a fight, but this was on a whole different scale. He couldn't be any more proud. Aiden had Dewy's back, keeping him safe from any oncoming persons so that Dewy could work his magic with relative ease.

Remy's eyes were still on Aiden's when he saw them widen with renewed dismay. The Siskan was already breaking into a run towards him when Remy turned around just in time to see Sabretooth, huge and ugly, using his large claws in a most inhumane manner to shred Dewy's dogs without a care, tossing them aside like so much meat.

Remy heard Dewy scream – _had he still been in their minds when they died? Lord have mercy! _– but he had no time for it. He snatched for his bo staff, howling when one of Sabretooth's large hands came down on his own before he could grasp it, the claws crunching and slicing down through flesh and bone with an amazing amount of pain. Like most of Remy's clothing, his gloves had some armor plating on them but there were gaps that allowed for movement. The fact that this could have been worse was small comfort to the huge bloom of agony that was bursting through his fingers right now.

"You still scream like a little girl," the feral man growled in his ear with true amusement, barely flinching when Remy's free hand came at him in a fist of retaliation, slamming down hard over his eyes. It wasn't going to be near enough to save his scrawny Cajun ass and Remy knew that in a minute a ruined hand was going to be the least of his problems.

Good thing the Thief wasn't here alone.

"Your turn!" Remy heard someone shout right before everything went blindingly white and loud.

It was the voice that gave it away, Gambit had certainly heard it often enough in drills, but it was the overpowering smell of ozone that confirmed it. Trigger had let loose with lightning bolts and they shot from both his fingers and the now charged floor, flooding Remy's poor sensitive eyes with bright light. True to his word, Trigger was introducing poor Sabes to a whole new world of pain and suffering and he received them full throttle. Turned out that Creed really did scream like a girl, shrill and high when hit full force with a thousand Tasers' worth of current. Remy heard rather than felt the dull thud through the floor as the man went flying and hit the ground with brutal force, quite some distance away from where he had originally stood.

"Who else wants some?!" Trigger continued to challenge, the ozone smell continuing as his feet brushed by Remy's head. He was advancing, giving the poor fallen Thief some cover while he recovered.

"You okay?" Aiden questioned as he reached his fallen team leader, his hands helping Remy to his feet.

"Cain't see shit..." Remy gasped, though it wasn't exactly true. He was flash blind so there were blobs here and there of darkness, blurry now with tears. His head was pounding, both from the shots to the head and from the overdose of light. His hand was one huge ache where Sabretooth had mangled it.

"Trig shure likesz to make an entrancze," Aiden joked, but he was already herding Remy towards the Dragon. "Good t'ing 'e give better zan 'e get."

**(break)**

Meanwhile the kids that had been charged with returning to the Dragon had not been idle. The moment they passed through the hanger doors, Grace and Julien had seen their small group to the small craft at a fast trot, just wanting to make the distance without mishap. They did so but then Grace was a little perplexed - now that they had reached the ship, how would they get inside? As far as she knew the small craft was still locked and Remy had the only key.

Before she could voice the question, however, she heard Zander's deep growl grumble some strange words in a language she didn't understand. Zander's gravelly voice changed during even that short command, reverting back to Kimble's lighter and more familiar tones as the lesser personality regained control over the pilot's body. Zander might have been active out in the field, but the Dragon was Kimble's domain and once they had returned to the ship, Kimble quickly reasserted himself. There was a satisfying click as the hatch obediently popped open and the ramp came down, inviting them back home. What Grace hadn't fully known was that Kimble was mentally bonded as tightly with craft as he was with Remy, he would never need a physical key to enter it, his brother Seth had seen to that.

This day had revealed many layers of this complicated Siskan that the kids hadn't really seen before. Earlier they had gotten their first good look at Zander out in the field and now again there was this strange, odd language that Remy magically somehow knew as well as his Siskans did, but that the kids had never heard before. It was no real secret that the Siskans were from Away, but it was easy to forget that fact since they acted like everyone else, for the most part. At the very least it was clear that Gambit was keeping Kimble around for more than just his ability to steer the Dragon.

It was Kimble's voice that had finished speaking the entrance codes and it was him here now, giving soft orders to the kids as the wounded were taken in and settled down. The ship might have been small but it was orderly with lots of hidden storage. Julien and Grace knew it well by now and as Kimble had directed them to, were getting out blankets and water bottles to the injured.

Kimble left them to it and collapsed heavily into his pilot's chair, maintaining his mental connection with the ship. Normally he would use his chair's keypad for certain types of activations, but his hands were all but useless at the moment. They were in his lap still looking all half melted and black. He was in terrible pain but was doing his best not to show it in front of the kids. In a moment of weakness he might have given control of the body back to Zander who held up better under circumstances like these, but he didn't want to give any more ground to the Punisher than he already had. It was bad enough that Zander was always in control out in the field. Kimble didn't want to give him any kind of foothold here, not in the last place that he was in charge of.

Kimble was no fighter like Zander or Aiden, he knew that, but he was trying his very best to be brave. His Siskan self craved acceptance as much as Aiden did, but he had to earn that in other ways - by being as steadfast and reliable as he could manage. He often sold himself short as many people do. In truth he was braver than many others of his kin - Seth was petrified at the notion of leaving the Arizona Complex and only did so under duress. Star lived in the Lab and had no desire to be out in the world without her precious Master, Hank. Kimble, though, used what courage he had to follow Aiden and Remy out here, to earn his own place. If Remy had followed him to the ship and saw the visage of outward calm Kimble was showing now for the benefit of the kids, he couldn't have been more proud.

Kimble couldn't actually start up the craft itself enough to actually fly it, it took an energy producer to do that, but he could get some of the small craft's defenses up. Seth had installed some minor energy fields that could repulse smaller sized bits of debris from causing any damage. It had a separate power source and could remain in place for an hour or so without needing a recharge. It would at least give them some shelter if things went really bad outside. Kimble hoped they wouldn't have to need it that long. He wanted out of here, badly.

All the while he was doing this his thoughts were ever on Aiden whom had been left outside. He knew Aiden could hold his own out there, but he would always worry. Best now to busy himself with their departure. They couldn't get out of here fast enough as far as he was concerned. He did as best he could to prepare the ship for launching and then slumped back into his pilot seat with his eyes closed, exhausted and battered.

Grace was too busy to see Kimble's pain. She was doing her best to get Kyle wrapped up warm in a blanket, he was still so shaky and obviously hurting, but he wasn't having any of it. There was noisy fighting going on outside and he was of the mind that this was no time for lying down, no matter how shitty he felt. He could rest when it was done. He did take a water bottle though, downing it greedily as he shambled his way back to the hatch door on his hands and feet so he could watch the goings on outside.

John joined him there, the feral pair looking like mismatched but otherwise competent watchdogs. John gave the boy a sniff as he came near, not even trying to hide it. Logan would have had more tact in using this enhanced sense, but John had been much too wild for far too long for political correctness. Kyle allowed it, giving John a nose over himself. Both came to the same unspoken conclusion – they were family in some vague way and therefore bonded. John was the dominant of course, especially considering Kyle's wretched state, but there would be no fighting. Kyle sensed the older man was no real threat to him and dipping his chin in peaceful submission, showed his teeth in a half smile before returning his attention outside.

Grace wasn't done fussing over Kyle. He had left the blanket behind in his drunken shuffle to the door and he was still much too exposed for her liking. She could see some blood and soot staining the oversized shirt Kyle was wearing, confirming that his burns would take some more time to fully heal even if it was at a faster rate than a normal human. John was still half naked himself so she brought both of them some sweat pants that came out of storage and also some packages of beef jerky. Gambit was an optimistic creature but yet paranoid enough to make sure the ship was well stocked in preparation for just about anything.

Kyle took the jerky greedily and downed it with more enthusiasm than he had the water. The meat they had fed him had been a nice start but he wanted more. The pants he only put on after the food was gone. John happily took what Grace had brought, nodding his thanks at her, though as he dressed his eyes never left the battle that was still so very close. He and Kyle were in firm agreement in one thing – no trespassers were getting up here without going through them first.

The boys now settled to her satisfaction, Grace stood behind them, ready for whatever might come. She felt in charge here, what with Kimble injured and now slumped painfully in his pilot chair. It didn't bother her in the least, in fact she kind of liked it. It made her feel she at least had a little bit of control in this crazy situation. Her outgoing personality made being in charge almost a natural state.

Tilda, once she had nothing more to do, took a seat as far away from the door as possible, not wanting to see. The screaming was enough to tell her that people were dying out there.

Izzie had done as she was asked, helping to get supplies for the injured but was clearly out of her element and nowhere near as comfortable with all this as Grace was. Izzie had followed Grace to the door but much more timidly. This whole day had been rather rough on the tiny fairy girl. She felt safer now that she was back inside the Dragon, that now that they were there, there was no way they could be driven out or taken by force again. That might not be true but she had never been so happy to see the inside of the ship. She hadn't done any actual fighting on the way to getting here and as far as she was concerned, she had been pretty much useless in this whole affair. At least she had been able to run fast enough to keep up with the group and hadn't been left behind. The battle outside looked brutal and awful, she knew that people were dying out there and it terrified her. She wasn't ready for this and perhaps never would be. She was giving serious consideration to the idea that maybe she should quit when and if they ever made it back home alive.

"I don't know if I can do this," she couldn't help but whisper.

Grace heard her and was quick to reassure her by placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. "You're not alone here, Izzie. I'll look after you. Together, we'll make sure everyone comes home."

Izzie didn't know if she could believe that or not. She was so scared right now. The fighting going on outside the craft was all so savage and not really like the drills back home.

Julien inched close enough to the door to look out, but he was still deep inside the ship, the closest to Kimble and watching over him as Remy had directed him to. It might have looked like he was lingering for Kimble's behalf, but really he was too frightened to go any nearer to the door. He could see plenty enough from where he stood to know terrible things were going on out there.

He was close enough at least to get a good look at his father at work. Julien watched Gambit fight and was suitably impressed in spite of himself. Everyone knew that Remy could handle himself, he wouldn't be a team leader if he hadn't had the skill, but this was the man unleashed and not holding back. Julien couldn't help but wonder - if he ever had the guts to remove the restraining collar, could that be him some day? Remy made it all look so effortless and easy though Julien was smart enough to know it wasn't that way at all. He had done enough drills to know.

As bad as things had gone today, Julien couldn't quite regret having answered his father's call this morning. He was now seeing what others at the Complex had only talked about – an adult team in action. This is what the Gold Team supposedly did all the time and had done the day they came to Twilight and shut down his former boss, Jason Frost. Their actions here, while clearly justified from all that Julien had witnessed first hand, were not all the different from then and it made Julien think. Had Frost really been any better than this Romulus guy? On display now was first hand evidence of a mutant hate group doing things to others that they had no right to. Frost had taken kids like himself just as Romulus had done to them earlier today. The team was doing their very best to shut him down and protect their own. It was a subtle shift in perspective that he had sorely needed.

Unfortunately, as dramatic as that change was, it wasn't enough to change events that were going on outside. Others were handling that and the frightened passengers could only watch and wait.

**(break)**

Wolverine had no time to see if his earlier lessons in humane animal control had paid off for Aiden or not. He never witnessed Dewy bring his own skills up to the next level. He never confirmed if the wounded had made it to the Dragon or not. He had his own hands full with Romulus and the man who claimed to be his son.

Daken had come forward to meet him, his bone claws already out. If he was counting on Logan demonstrating any fatherly love, he was shit out of luck. One look at Kyle's blackened back had removed them far from Logan's mind. Romulus didn't seem so pleased to see his young charge dash out at his father like that, he had frowned, but said nothing. Daken was his own force and wouldn't be stopped by mere words. Besides, this was a fight surely worth watching.

Logan was ready for him and they clashed with a fury only the most savage of animals ever experience. They were similarly armed – both clawed, one set bone and the other metal – and so fought in the same manner. They slashed and stabbed and dodged and rolled. Blood flew as cuts were made that almost as quickly sealed up, only be ripped open anew. It was instructive for Logan, however. Every healing cut and stab eroded away Logan's lingering doubts about Daken's supposed paternity. This would be no quick fight.

Their struggle had quieted the large room somewhat. Most of Romulus' men had gathered in the nearest Chinook helicopter waiting to depart. They had been loading as much equipment as they could into the large craft but they were paused now, distracted by the gladiators competing in this would be arena. Even those still battling it out on the floor were separating, taking quick moments here and there to peek at the pair, as if theirs was the main fight that was going to actually decide this, not their own petty skirmishes.

It was quite a sight. Daken had a liquid flowing speed and oozed easily out of the range of many a mighty blow but Logan had power and when he did connect, it was devastating. More than once those metal claws bit deep in the belly and the kid had to spin away, holding tight his inside parts that were now outside until they knitted back up. He did reciprocate a time or two by ripping open Wolverine's throat with a kind of manic glee that made his eyes burn oh so brightly. While they were both bloodied quite nicely there wasn't much talk, it wasn't that kind of battle. Insults had no place here.

There was one pause however, an almost comic moment when the pair had to duck as the smoking body of Logan's half brother Sabretooth flew by, given that toss by Trigger's powerful electrical bolts.

"He confessed to me once that he would like to be able to fly," Daken admitted, his voice light with real humor as he wiped some sweaty, bloody froth from his chin. "Who knew he would actually succeed?"

"Everyone needs a hobby," came Logan's own snarky reply and the fight resumed as if it had never stopped.

As Wolverine plied his trade as best he could he knew that ultimately this was pointless. Since they were both healers, whatever deep injury they did to one another was only temporary. In similar fights with Sabretooth, Wolverine had often resorted to simply trying to wear the big man down. In this case, however, he himself was the bigger man. Daken's slender body gave him a Gambit like grace and his training had been of the highest caliber. Whatever cost cutting shortcuts Romulus made in his life, skills work hadn't been one of them. Many fighters had a tell or a signature move they came back to again and again. This boy had none other than the fact that he seemed absolutely tireless. What was he going to do?

While Wolverine and Remy didn't always see eye to eye, they did often enjoy a sparring match or two when they got the chance. It taught Logan two things – how NOT to deliver a killing stroke when the event didn't call for it, but it also helped him to learn some of Gambit's better moves. Repetition had a way of doing that. So far he had been stringing Daken along, sparring, and hadn't yet revealed that he had a quick move or two of his own in his little bag of tricks.

On one level he had in fact been looking forward to this, the inevitable fight between father and son. He had wanted to see just how well this kid could fight, to see if he could measure up to his own fairly high standards. Daken certainly had. Logan still had no doubt he himself would win, but Daken was certainly making him work for it. There was some small glimmer of pride there - if in fact this kid turned out to be his true son, he wasn't a wimp or a pushover by any means.

He dodged and feinted right but swung left, a deep crushing blow that caught Daken on the temple, staggering the boy and dropping him quick to his knees, hands out to catch his fall. The moment the man's hands hit the floor Wolverine stomped down, smashing not only the hand but the claws as well, sending shards of shattered bone off as bloody shrapnel.

Daken howled in agony, the first loud cry the man had made. Logan knew he would. This was one of Sabretooth's signature moves and he had used it many a time on Logan before Logan's claws had been coated with protective metal. How Logan had screamed then just as his kid was bellowing now.

For the first time, Romulus moved. He had been standing there, letting the titans duke it out without hindrance, his eyes bright with a kind of savage glee, but something in that scream... well. It was as though the man hadn't expected Daken to make any sort of mistake. Logan watched him come but wasn't about to let Daken catch his breath. The scream had hardly died from the young man's lips when Logan let him have his fist again. This time when it struck his temple, the claws were fully extended. Daken let out another choked wheeze, high pitched and utterly startled, then he slid bonelessly from Logan's claws to the floor, slumped and broken.

Romulus paused in mid stride, considering this. He and Logan both knew the injury, though certainly grievous, was not fatal. Not to the best of the best of the Lupine anyhow. He regarded Logan with his cold dark eyes and called out to him, "Can you do it? Can you kill your own son? You will have to do it to take my place and claim your prize. Take his head and finish him!"

Logan just gave a dry laugh. Pointless this question was, just as this fight had been. As this whole exercise of kidnapping and torture had been. "Not for yer fucking amusement, I won't."

Romulus wasn't fooled. "Can't do it, can you? Even after what he did to you and yours. My, how they've domesticated you."

"I'm not going to kill my son – assuming he even is my son. I am going to try and save him." It wasn't a thought without any hope. Even Remy had gotten Julien around a rough corner – more or less. Perhaps in time he could do the same for his own wayward kin.

Romulus shook his head, disagreeing. "Then you will most certainly lose."

It was time to go and Romulus' men knew it. The packing had resumed, their frightened and pale faces showing they hadn't expected Daken to fall like that.

Romulus, finished with Logan now, turned his gaze to the left when he heard Sabretooth, still a bit fried around the edges, grunt and begin to rise. Romulus made no motion to assist the man, either he would make it to his feet on time or he wouldn't. He did save some of his regard for Trigger who had dared to make a path that had followed Creed's entertaining, albeit short lived flight across the room. Trigger was waiting – hoping actually – that the big man might rise and be eager for the second helping the boy had ready and waiting.

Hercules followed him with Cristof trailing right behind. Hercules had plowed down whatever feeble minions Romulus had who had dared to challenge him with ridiculous ease, happy to have something to hit.

Cristof, however, had split, veering off towards Romulus, but it wasn't a fight he had in mind. He had held his own, showing that Grace was as good as her word in regards to his character. His head was bowed in submission as he approached Romulus, all contrite. "Forgive me, master. One of these was my friend. I know they don't have the power to defeat you so I was not afraid. I know you will be angry with me, but I am ready to accept whatever punishment you think I deserve."

Romulus just smiled down on the boy, saying, "Good for you," and then raising his gun, shot him in the head without batting an eye.

"You bastard!" Grace cried in disbelief, her shout loud enough to be heard all the way from the Dragon. She knew what the others didn't - that while Cristof was feral enough to be Lupine, he did not have the ability to heal quickly. He was most certainly dead.

"And how do you think this is going to inspire anyone to join you?" Logan snarled. He shouldn't have been surprised by the man's cruelty, but it was still a shock to see such callousness. "You murder your own people!"

"Yes, and I think we've had quite enough of that," came a familiar voice and all at once things got loud and crazy.


	4. Chapter 4

Author's note : Sorry for the slight delay on this but I'm back to work and don't have as much time to skim things. Plus that season finale for Sons of Anarchy really threw me for a loop. I mean, holy crap...

(Four)

Remy ducked when the first explosions hit, he couldn't help it. There was no immediate logic behind the sudden bangs and clouds of smoke that followed, they had not come from any missiles he had seen or from anything that had been thrown. While lots of things that went bang sounded similar, he didn't think this had come from Trigger either. Perhaps someone had lobbed some kind of crazy ordinance into the mix, he couldn't be sure.

More explosions boomed in the large open space, followed by the quick rasp of automatic gunfire. One thing Remy had noticed earlier was that not many of Romulus' men were armed with guns. Claws and fangs and brute strength seemed to be the order of the day so unless the choppers had been loaded with these guns handy, some new development was taking place. Screams rang out, coming from people Gambit did not recognize. His vision had cleared somewhat from being flash blinded and that was when he got a bit a of surprise.

The smoke cleared enough for him to make out the familiar figure of Butch Madison, leader of the mutant terrorist organization known as the Outkasts. As he watched the man wisp into view he finally understood what was really happening here. While it might have seemed like a rescue, Remy knew better. Things just might have gone from bad to worse here.

Butch Madison had crossed Remy's path more than once already. The first time had been by reputation only and at a time when Remy was young and stupid. The African American leader of the Outkasts had made overtures through intermediaries that he was interested in Remy because Butch was above all, a collector of energy producers. Remy had refused and Butch had let him go, moving on to other more willing targets. In the same way that Romulus went out of his way to gather the ferally inclined, Butch sought only those who showed promise of real power. If you could explode something, zap it or cause it to fry, you were his man and he would pay you handsomely for the privilege of employing you. It wasn't a bad deal – so long as you were willing to swindle, rob, con and kill your way to the top of the financially elite.

Not that Butch was an energy producer himself. His mutation was of a different sort. He could turn his body into an invisible mist, allowing him access to any place he liked, no matter how secure. In ghost form, he had no scent, released no heat that sensors could detect. He could travel great distances this way, undetectable to those with enhanced senses, at least until he solidified his body. By then he was mostly likely already upon you and rendering you helpless before you even knew he was there. It wasn't just his own flesh he could manipulate in this way, but also any weapons he might chose to carry. Remy had even once seen him do this to an entire group of people, leading them in undetected just as he was doing now, bringing along his army to play.

Butch, though born American, wasn't much interested in leading any particular country. He did however dabble freely in politics in so far as it effected his ever growing bank accounts. There was an unsubstantiated rumor that Butch's Outkasts had even once absconded with nuclear missiles when one country threatened to use them on another, something that would no doubt cause one too many stock markets to crash – not to mention the inevitable demise of so many wealthy humans Butch had yet to fleece. When asked directly Butch did not confirm these allegations ... but he hadn't denied it either.

What Remy did know for certain was that Butch Madison and his Outkasts had helped out substantially the last time the X-men had run across a big bad guy – the terrorist Jael. He hadn't exactly been a saving angel of course. Then, as now, Butch delayed his entrance onto the battlefield, waiting until the X-men had suffered heavy casualties before swooping in to save the day. It was one of his most annoying traits.

Of course the real question was why was the freak even here in the first place?

But there he was, walking casually along as those he had brought with him misted into view. His crew was busy without many of them being armed with conventional weapons themselves, they had no need. They showered Romulus and his people with balls of glowing plasma and bolts of electricity to match Trigger's own. Those that did carry weapons were heavily armed with the world's latest toys of destruction - there were large caliber guns, automatic rifles and a grenade launder or two. One of Romulus' large Chinook helicopters was the first casualty, going up in smoke and flame, the deafening blast knocking most of the people nearby right off their feet. At least the open hatchway above kept the room from filling up with smoke and choking them all.

Like some of his own men, Butch carried a large automatic rifle – Butch may have had a fondness for the mutant abilities of his crew but wasn't beyond using a bullet or bomb or two to get the job done. He could afford it, he was well financed and very connected. He carried more than just a gun, his legs had straps tied to them, holding his many throwing knives.

Remy shook his head to clear it. He was still dazed a bit stupid from the concussive blasts, still seeing spots floating around here and there, and still bleeding from the numbed hand Sabretooth had torn. He wasn't without any surprise at this strange change of events, though he guessed he should not be shocked by anything Butch did. At least he should be grateful that this time Butch hadn't waited until most of the Red Team was dead before stepping in.

Butch's mutation kept him free from harm, the enemy's bullets traveling uselessly through his semi-solid body. It didn't keep him from retaliating. With a shout of, "Yo! Hans! Hans Bergman! Where's my fuckin' money?!" he tossed a good sized dagger at one of Romulus's nearby men and brought him down, the weapon lodging neatly in his chest.

Romulus jumped aside in surprise at the man's accuracy and was nearly struck by a second blade that came his way. The guy standing next to him wasn't so lucky, this one was less deadly and had sunk into the man's meaty thigh.

"Hans!" Romulus howled, snatching at the stricken man. "What have you done? Get us out of here!" Romulus might have been happy enough to play around with Remy's less experienced crew but these guys are too powerful and most of his crew had bailed already. The rest had been blown up in the first Chinook. He was now woefully understaffed.

"Aren't you forgetting something!" Butch shouted loudly. He pointed to Daken's mangled body. "Wouldn't want you to leave your best man (snort!) behind."

"He ain't yers to give!" Logan protested loudly at Butch's words. It wasn't that he held Daken in any high regard, but the douche-bag was still his kid and not to be fought over like a stolen toy. He also wasn't any happier that Butch had shown up out of the blue like this, taking over what Logan had considered to be his deal. The idea that Butch might have tracked them there somehow didn't sit any better. Logan didn't care much for spies or stalkers.

Butch did not give a verbal reply, he simply fired a few rounds at Logan's feet to back him up, not caring the least that Daken, who was still unconscious and unable to move out of the way, was struck.

Logan jumped back from the shots, snarling, but was kept from reclaiming his prize by two of Butch's men coming forward to claim his property. Their glowing hands let the X-man know that they were powerful plasma producers and that to argue with them would not be to his benefit.

It was a choice he wished he didn't have to make. When he had seen Daken lying there so limp and helpless, he was startled to realize that he wanted Daken for himself - not to defeat in further battle, but in the back of his mind he had some small glimmer of hope that if Daken was taken into his custody, perhaps he get the man turned around, just as Kyle had been. As Julien had been as well. But that couldn't happen if Romulus took Daken back.

Logan could only watch helplessly as Daken's body was dragged over to Butch who regarded Romulus quite calmly in spite of the brutality he had just shown. He didn't have to speak to show that it was a trade he was offering, Daken's body made that clear enough.

Romulus stood there, actually considering his options before he finally growled, "You again. What do you want this time, Madison?"

Remy grinned in pain at the casual use of Butch's name. Why did it not surprise him at all that these two freaks had met before? The world wasn't as large as it once was and seemed to be shrinking all the time. All these bad guys being on such familiar terms could only be bad.

Butch gave Romulus his answer. "I've made that pretty clear. Give me Hans."

Wolverine smiled when he saw Romulus still mulling it over. If Romulus didn't care about what happened to Daken then Logan might be able to get his hands on him yet.

It was a small hope. Hans, being such a powerful teleporter, was Romulus' best means of escape this day. The surviving Chinook could hold a lot of men and cargo, but it was large and noisy. Not exactly the easiest getaway. It certainly wouldn't be stealthy. If Butch had tracked the Red Team here it wouldn't be a hardship for Butch to track the chopper out. Logan did find it curious that Hans hadn't bailed on his own already, he could have teleported himself out and left the boss behind. Maybe he was just loyal.

Butch thought Romulus was taking too long to decide and was happy to let it show. As an incentive to hurry this up, he gave the still dazed Daken a few more rounds to the body. The man had begun to recover and wake some from Logan's crude lobotomy but this new batch of abuse left him twitching and growling in pain. Confused and only feebly aware, Daken could only feel it but not stop it. He was still pretty much as helpless as a kitten and unable to defend himself during this exchange.

Romulus howled in anger at the unnecessary use of firepower but Butch was nonplused by the dramatic display. "By all means, take all day to consider what to do. Just understand that my blades are always toxic. Your man couldn't teleport you out now even if he wanted to. I always win, one way or another."

Romulus turned to Hans and watched as the man tried to prove Butch wrong. Hans' body flickered a bit here and there but otherwise couldn't teleport away. The teleporter glared at Butch and shouted, "You sick fuck! I'll kill you for this!" Empty words given his current predicament.

It didn't convince Romulus either. Hans gave a startled cry as his boss grabbed him more or less by the scruff like a naughty puppy that had piddled on the floor and gave him a rough toss in Butch's direction. There really was no point in keeping him now that he was useless to him.

Butch nodded, pleased now. He gestured for two of his men to drag Daken's body closer and then exchanged it for Hans. Hans was hurting now far more than a simple knife wound should have inflicted and once at Butch's feet, he collapsed in a wheezing heap of misery. Butch hadn't been kidding about the poison, it was taking its toll.

Romulus grabbed Daken himself and hauled the man up onto the open back of the large Chinook without an ounce of pity or gentleness. Daken was stumbling along drunkenly, his body having had enough punishment for one day. His eyes were glazed, broken, and it gave Logan pain to see it. There were still too many unanswered questions between them and he hated to see him go though he knew he was helpless to stop it.

Sabretooth meanwhile had regained his feet and while Trigger's attention had been diverted to the exchange between Romulus and Butch, he had stumbled his way back into Romulus' craft. His skin was still smoking and it looked like the worst of the fight had gone out of him. He wouldn't be seeking round two.

When Logan realized that Butch was actually going to let Romulus simply fly on out of here, he howled in rage, denied further battle. He came forward as if to take Butch on himself, but Hercules and Trigger snatched at him, holding him back. With this many men still in the hanger, it wasn't worth it to keep fighting.

With that, Romulus returned to his Chinook. The hatch closed and the blades whirled scattering dust and debris. It rose and once out of the hanger, was cloaked and gone.

**(break)**

Remy watched as Romulus' chopper began to lift and emboldened, made his way back to where Logan was. His vision had cleared enough for him to make his way easily, not always a blessing as it allowed him a perfect view of the Outkasts' terrible carnage, they had made short work of many of Romulus' weaker members. Bodies lay about like unwanted children's toys and blood was splashed all about, war's grisly artwork on full display. He caught up to Butch and the man smiled, recognizing him. It wasn't a pleasant grin. It was no secret that the man held Remy in contempt for his lack of nerve when it came to killing.

The last time they had met face to face it was out on the battlefield at the end of the Game and Remy had been severely trashed after having a comrade literally melt to death in his arms. It hadn't helped that he had also been witnessing the deaths of nearly four thousand mutants on that same field of battle, not an easy thing for an empath as sensitive as Remy had become. He had recovered, but it had taken time. Seeing Butch again brought back memories of that severe pain but Remy did his best to shove it down. The past was past and there was plenty yet to do right here and now.

Butch took note of Remy's mangled hand. The Thief had used a clean hand kerchief to wrap it, but the blood was seeping through. "LeBeau. You're still alive. How many of those nine lives do you have left anyhow?"

Remy chose not to reply to the dig, but nodded the way Romulus had gone. "You always let de bad guy walk away like dat?" The Outkasts had done most of the murderous damage at the end of the Game, enough that Gambit knew Butch was more than capable of taking Romulus all the way down. "What's yo' play in all dis?"

"I got what I wanted."

Gambit looked down, frowning a bit as Hans' labored breathing turned into a deep throttling snore before ceasing altogether. He tried to ignore the last glimmers of Han's shine fading away to nothing. Knowing the man was dying was one thing, but being able to see the finality of it like that, or from anyone, was always unsettling. He was a bit nauseated by it, but did his best not to show it. "You sure about dat? Kinda 'ard to collect money from a dead man, innit though?" Remy questioned, not exactly teasing. He did not have Butch's easy familiarity with corpses.

Butch looked more than pleased at the idea. "Oh, I have found there are many ways to settle a debt, some more satisfying than others."

Remy shuddered and looked away. This kind of ruthlessness was the main reason he had never joined Butch's merry band of psycho killers. He didn't have the stomach for it.

Logan wasn't so squeamish, at least not about getting into a fight. He wasn't the least bit pleased about how all this had gone down and he was now right up in Butch's face. "You again!" he growled, showing plenty of fang. He had the claws out on one hand for emphasis. "Nice to know we can count on you for that last minute save. Oh, wait! You let that sick fuck just waltz right on out of here!"

"Yes. Yes I did," came the cool reply. He had answered Logan but his eyes were all on Hercules and Trigger who had stepped behind Wolverine, giving him backup should he need it. Aiden wasn't far behind, moving more to Remy's back in an unspoken taking of sides. In spite of all of that firepower the man had nothing to fear really, his mutation shielded him from so much.

"Why would you do that?!" Wolverine demanded, spitting in his rage.

"I don't want the man, someone will just take his place. It is more important to me that I slow him down instead. I want the camps, the bases. I want to make him _**spend**_, understand? I want his resources. I tracked him here, and I will be tracking him there, where ever that might be."

"So you planned to just rob his ass?" Remy interjected, incredulous. He wasn't against someone pulling off a great score, but there was greed and there was stupidity. Romulus was a terrorist, not an art collector. He needed to go, not just get a little light in the wallet.

Butch's smile was pained, as one might look at a retarded child that just spoke out of turn. "There is more than one way to take down an organization as powerful as this Lupine. Sometimes it takes a hammer, other times a scalpel. My way takes longer, but it will be more final in the end."

"How did you track him here?" Logan demanded.

Butch just smiled. "I have my ways."

Something in that smile was unsettling. They couldn't know it but Butch, through the skill of his many spies, had been listening in on the intelligence exchange between Seth and the Lucky Dragon. The X-men liked to think they had an edge over the average political group but Butch was a major player and no slouch in the spy versus spy game. They had nothing on him nor could they ever reasonably hope to ever keep him out. He kept close tabs on these X-men, did Butch, and when he learned that the X-men had collected samples so near to this location, he had made his move. All he had needed was confirmation of where his target was located and once he'd had it from other sources, he had moved in. Learning that Hans was here as well was just an added bonus.

"You sick fuck!" Logan howled. "I am so sick of yer stupid games! Waltzin' in here like yer the big man! Romulus was mine!"

Butch was unafraid of the man's outburst. He looked Logan square in the eye as he criticized sharply, "If that was true, you would have taken him yourself. Am I to blame if you are so inept? The man is gone, get over it."

"The hell I will! Who knows who he'll go after next. Those dead bodies will be on you!"

"Maybe, probably. But this was still expensive, it cost him dearly, taking you. I doubt it was worth it," Butch said rudely, looking Logan over with disdain. "What did he want with you anyway?"

"Just to say hello."

Butch just snorted with disbelief. "I doubt that, but I wouldn't worry. You'll see him again. I keep nibbling at him but he keeps popping back up again." Butch glanced at the sky, glanced at his watch. "You should get out while you still can."

"Why's dat?" Remy questioned. He didn't trust Butch any further than the man could be thrown.

"SHIELD is on their way."

"How do you know?"

"Because I called them. This base will be my gift to them."

"Never pegged you for a stooge," Logan criticized sharply.

"Being a CI gives me some breathing room," came another cool reply.

As much as it bugged Wolverine, he knew the feeling. In this the X-men were not different. They had worked plenty of deals with SHIELD to keep wandering members out of the lockups and to send SHIELD after prey that was too big for the X-Men to handle. In this crazy world some temporary alliances got made in the name of peace and stability.

"Fury and I have an understanding," Butch added, as if the statement had made it all okay. "One hand washes the other."

Logan didn't care. "I could give a shit about your understanding. Way I see it, letting Romulus go makes you nothing but a coward."

"There is cowardice and then there is prudence. Why should I sacrifice my people only to deny you a win in a fight you so desperately wanted to have? Besides Romulus was letting you go. Surely you noticed that he had pulled out almost all of his personnel, easing your so called escape? If he had wanted you dead you would be so. He is a man who doesn't want to be seen unless he plans it, your death would have been far less public. No, Romulus is a user and he is obviously saving you for something he wants more. He doesn't make mistakes."

"And you know so much about him?" Logan asked dubiously.

"Actually, yes."

Butch then explained that he had been trying to take out Romulus for a really long time, but the guy was too damn clever. Slippery. The Outkasts made great efforts to close down some of Romulus' camps only to find more had been opened elsewhere. Butch felt that he was justified in tracking these bases down as if he was some sort of mutant policeman. It was no different than when he had made the decision to remove those pesky nukes that others had seemed so eager to use. While Butch could at times be forceful himself to make a point, he carried an intense dislike for bullies. He didn't like guys like Romulus, freaks who keep trying to take over at the cost of weaker people. Butch didn't care if they wanted to just make a buck or two – who doesn't? – but folks trying to act like kings and interfere with his own liberty, well, that shit just wouldn't fly, not in his ball park. Not if he had the firepower to make them back down. Butch was more than capable of co-existing with some power groups as he did with the X-Men and SHIELD, but he took marching orders from no one. He was his own man with his own agenda.

Butch regarded Logan sharply. "And speaking of marching orders, you might want to ask yourself why Romulus has so much of that Starktech and access to SHIELD equipment like the train. It has to come from somewhere. Romulus has powerful friends."

"And you don't?"

Butch just smiled. "Maybe I'm just waiting to see who steps up with an offer I can believe. The House of Xavier, I thought you were going to unite us all and save the world from itself. I thought it was in your mandate to work with all of us for peace. That hasn't happened yet in spite of all of your many efforts. Maybe it is **you** who should be rethinking your tactics."

"We don't make deals with people we can't trust."

"Then that is your loss. But I can be generous. To prove that, here is a parting gift before you go." He handed Logan a thumb drive.

Logan took it, squinting with suspicion. Like he would even know how to use it. That was what Seth was for. "What's this?

"Laura Kinney, also known as X23. Happy hunting."

"X23?" Logan questioned dubiously, squinting at Butch in an unfriendly way. He didn't like being messed with much. "What the fuck is that?"

"Not what. Who. You seem as though you are collecting Lupine as much as Romulus, yes? At least in terms of your direct family. You have Kyle and John. You may not have Daken, but you can have what amounts to his half sister."

"Are you trying to say this is another one of my kids?"

"Not exactly. Your clone."

Logan snorted loudly in disbelief. He'd had enough with playing with his family tree for one day. "My clone. Right. And the tooth fairy just kissed Santa Claus. What kind of fool do you think I am?"

"The smart kind that appreciates when he has been given an item of rare worth." Butch just smiled indulgently. He was aware of Logan's reputation for having a quick temper. "They named her that because she was the only clone that proved worthy of being kept alive. See, you worry so much about mutant groups like mine and Romulus' here, but you often overlook the less obvious but more sinister threats – modern day scientists. Do not underestimate humanity's desire for survival and the lengths they will go to achieve that. They will take the best parts of us – by force if necessary – and use them for their own gain. Time to keep your eyes on the whole chessboard, boys, and not just on the more easily seen darker squares."

Logan was going to reply with more scathing doubtful remarks, but something in Butch's voice gave him pause. He didn't think Butch was lying, not about this anyhow.

Butch saw it. "It's all there. Have Seth vet that all you want. But I suggest you act on that soon. You aren't the only ones looking to claim her. Think of me what you will. I am choosing to force Romulus to spend, you can hurt him in other ways like denying him more of your family to toy with. We are all doing our parts. Together we can shut him down and those whom he would serve. He is too big to be taken down by any one person, it will have to be a group effort. Take his money and then his allies."

Logan groaned inwardly. _How did Butch even know about Seth? Geez..._ "I'm still not happy with you letting Daken go like that. He said he was my son and I don't know that he was lying."

Butch shrugged. "I know what he claims to be, but that does not make it so."

Logan wasn't buying any of it and his voice dripped with disdain as he sneered, "You're no better than he is, making up your own rules as you go along. Both of you with yer overblown sense of entitlement."

Remy stood as he was, trying to process all of this himself. _Did Logan just say that guy was his son? Damn... but there were those claws... _It was just too much and he was growing impatient. He clicked his teeth and looked away in annoyance. This bickering was pointless and he just wanted to take his kids and go home. He had wounded to care for. They could settle this later, there was nothing to be done for it now. The bad guys had already departed, taking their answers with them. It was time to go.

Butch turned to go but he stopped once again, looking over Trigger with obvious delight. "I'm always on the lookout for new talent. You're welcome to join us."

"You got not'ing he want," Remy insisted roughly, moving possessively in front of the boy. He could only hope that his obvious rejection would not be lost on the kids. Butch and the Outkasts were bad news and none of his kids should be anywhere near them.

Trigger responded in Remy's favor and backed right up. Trigger wasn't always sure about people, but he trusted Remy more than this guy. If Gambit didn't like Butch then there was a problem. Trigger hadn't been one of Frost's victims but he had heard enough about the guy to be wary of strange guys with easy promises. Butch's own men were a little scary with their heavy skill set. They had killed people today and while he didn't mind letting loose once in a while, he was no murderer.

Butch watched Trigger retreat and said to Remy, "That's for him to decide. Your own son as well. He is a power producer, is he not?"

Remy pulled out his bo staff on that one, flexing it just as easily with his left hand as he did with his right. He butt the end of it hard on the floor in warning and snarled, "Baisez-vous, encule de mere! You can't 'ave im, not now, not ever! Best git yo' sorrowful ass to walkin' b'fore you piss me off fo' real. You wouldn't like it much."

Butch wasn't moved by the display or the vulgar profanity he had the skill to translate, but he didn't challenge it either. He said simply, "Time will tell," and then walked off. He began giving orders and the Outkasts organized, heading out. They made no moves towards taking the Dragon, though Butch did give it a long look over and at Julien who was now standing in the hatch.

Remy and the others didn't wait for Butch to leave. Once the Outkasts were clearly on the move they headed to the Dragon. They weren't much interested in seeing Fury today and having to explain their involvement in this. Remy did motion to Hercules to take up Cristof's poor ruined body and bring it along. They hadn't known him long, but his sacrifice had earned him a decent burial at least. If only for Grace's sake.

Remy hadn't quite reached the ramp when Trigger called out and pointed to the open hatch. "We've got company."

Remy grumbled, pissed that they hadn't missed Fury after all, but when he looked up he broke out in a wide smile instead. It wasn't some overpowered government agency, but the Lucky Dragon instead who hovered there. Things were looking up.

**(break)**

It wasn't an accident or happenstance that had finally led the Lucky Dragon to Romulus' hanger. When Butch Madison had told Logan he could be generous, he had meant more than the small thumb drive he had handed over.

Minutes earlier, Scott had jumped in his seat when he felt his cell phone chirp in his pocket. It couldn't be a call from home, he knew, the caller would have contacted the Lucky Dragon directly instead. His wife was here so it wasn't that. It could be one of the kids from the Red Team, he could dare to hope.

He clicked his phone open and frowned at the unknown number. He answered anyway. "Summers."

"Still looking for your friends?"

"Who is this? How did you get this number?" He didn't immediately recognize the voice though it did sound vaguely familiar.

Jean moved to his side, concerned by his tone. She didn't need to be a telepath to see this was something unexpected. The only question was if it was bad or good.

The voice on Scott's phone continued to speak. "Your friends are in Pennsylvania. Here are their exact co-ordinates." The voice then read off some numbers which Scott then relayed to Fallen who typed them into Lucky's map systems.

Scott kept the voice talking even as he watched Lucky work the numbers on the screen and pinpoint that exact location. It didn't look they would have to go far. "And why should we believe you?"

"Because I am Butch Madison, leader of the Outkasts, and I never lie."

"The fuck you are," Scott challenged, but his words lacked conviction. In the scheme of things it wasn't entirely impossible for a man who could spirit away nukes to get this number. Didn't mean it wasn't creepy.

Butch may have given Wolverine some crap in the hanger, but the truth was he had always held some affection for the X-men. Or Xavier at the very least. Butch could respect the man's ambition to keep the big heavy hitters from duking things out in an arena where so many innocents could get hurt. Xavier wasn't trying to steal money or topple governments. His aims were not entirely at odds with Butch's own. It was that sentiment that had Butch calling now, alerting the Lucky Dragon to the location of their missing companions. He had made this call seconds before he announced his presence to Romulus in the hanger but he reasoned that he could be well away before he could be tracked. Besides, doing this might be something he could use should he ever need to ask Xavier for a favor down the road.

And so Butch informed Cyclops, "They were taken by someone they did not expect. They can probably get out on their own but they may need some back up. I wouldn't wait too long if I were you." The line went dead.

"It's close enough to where we are," Fallen advised, waiting for Scott's answer. It was her ship but he was still in charge. "Five, six minutes top speed."

"Do it but be ready for anything."

They flew quickly and a couple of minutes later Fallen gasped softly when the beacon light for the Dragon 2 came on. The information they had been given had to be right for that to happen. But what were they headed into?

They saw the smoke before they saw the buildings itself. "That's not good," Fallen complained unhappily.

"Smoke isn't always bad," Scott tried to reassure. "Could be our guys busting out."

_Or it be could be our guys dying_, was the unspoken addendum to that, but no one gave it any voice.

As they got closer, Fallen could see the long winding train tracks stringing through the vast forest all around, converging on a large flat industrial building. Trains were moving away from it but in different directions. They didn't look like most industrial cars, they were long, black and unmarked. The trains would have been hard enough track in a crowd as it was and with so many departing at once, they couldn't possibly follow them all. But just the fact that they were there at all made the caller's information that much more credible.

"Seth, the tracks."

"I'm already on it," came his quick answer. The truth was that while the conversation with Butch had taken place, he had finally hacked into the Omega Grid, the main server tracking all train traffic along this dense line of complicated tracks. "But they must have some kind of classified clearance or a hack. I can see the trains on your cameras but they aren't coming up on the train finder."

"We can't follow all of them," Jean protested, as confused as everyone else. "There are too many and we don't even know if the kids are on any of them. There's buildings here, too."

Rogue had a solution. "Maybe we could chase one of 'em, see where they go?"

"We still risk infecting other people with the Flush," Hank cautioned. He was still down below doing his best keep Gryfon stable, but had been listening in on everything that had been going on. "Technically, we are still under quarantine and shouldn't be in contact with anyone."

"Does flying count? Ah just want to track it."

Scott could live with that and nodded. "Go, but keep in touch."

Fallen opened up a door and Rogue jumped out, happy to be doing something. All of that sitting around and waiting had been horrible.

"I doubt these are actual SHIELD trains," Seth admitted a moment later. "SHIELD can go off the rails sometimes - pun intended – but let's be real, they would never use someone like Hans for anything. They couldn't hope to control him, nevermind his terrible past crimes. But whoever it is could be trying to make us think it's SHIELD when it's not. SHIELD has immunity and can break certain rules, the same way the government can torture with impunity. They come and people get out of the way, it's a handy cover to have if you can make someone think you're them. No one will question what you are doing there."

"What if it is a splinter group?" Jean offered. "SHIELD is a huge organization. It's not impossible that they could have cells or groups of people inside doing things on the sly. Maybe one hand doesn't know what the other is doing."

Fallen didn't like the sound of that. "Should we call Fury?"

Scott just shook his head. "It's too soon. We don't know how much of our info is accurate."

Just then Rogue chimed in, reporting on what she saw outside. "There's a large flat building with some kind of huge open roof hanger door open. That's where the smoke is coming from. Ah can see a big ole chopper in there and Ah think... Yeah, it's the Dragon 2. It's real crowded down there and Ah think there's some kind of fight going on."

"Then we should be jumping in," Bobby suggested, always eager for it. "Those are our people down there."

"And by just showing up we could kill every non mutant in that room," Hank was quick to remind, unable to keep the frustration from his voice. While he could identify with the desire to help out their comrades, they had to be smart about it and be patient. "We could all be infected with the Flush."

"You don't know how exposed we've been," Bobby continued to argue. It was true. They hadn't been in contact with Gryfon long and he had been infected in a non-conventional way. They had no idea if they were capable of spreading the disease or not.

"We just can't risk it."

"So we just stand by and watch our people die?"

"We have no idea what's going on down there."

Bobby begged Scott with his eyes. "Our people are down there!"

"If it's Butch and the Outkasts it's mostly mutants anyhow," Scott grumbled, more to himself than anyone. "Exposure won't be fatal. Besides, Butch invited us. We have to go."

"Guys, listen," Seth was quick to interrupt. "Here's some preliminary data I hacked from Stark's mainframe. Those bullets are bad, but they may not infect the same as direct exposure. They weren't made for that, only for bringing down a high powered target more quickly. A mutant target most likely."

"That was risky," Scott chided, but he did it gently. He was referring to hacking the Stark computers. If SHIELD was high tech, those were higher and more dangerous. If Seth's hack was detected, the consequences could be high. The last thing Scott wanted was some kind of high tech war against Tony Stark's own group of hackers. Not that Tony Stark would admit to having them, but Scott wasn't that stupid.

Seth just shook his head. "I had to try, our own folks were at risk. The bullets seem to infect the targets, but that's it. At least that's what his files say."

"A little convenient, isn't it?" Jean challenged. "Like Stark would ever admit to anything that might be unsafe."

"Or he could be sued for," Scott mused, but he was fidgeting, his eyes on the open hatch.

"We should still go for it," Bobby was insisting. "I don't want to sit up here while our people are down there, dying."

"Neither do I," Scott replied, his voice betraying a decision made.

"Fine, do what you must. Just be so very careful," Hank continued to caution, his voice tight with worry. He didn't mind the occasional fracas, but not one followed by the bodies of the infected. "Try not to get close to anyone you don't have to."

The hatch was still open from Rogue's departure and the others made for it. They didn't all have to be able to fly, Jean was more than capable of using her telekinetic powers to lower the others carefully out and down into the hanger. They had no more than simply gathered at the hatch when they felt the heavy beat of Romulus's departing second Chinook throbbing in the air, a large rumbling double bladed chopper. As much as they wanted to go down, they had to avoid its huge twirling blades, it wouldn't be safe to get too close.

"Shoot it, don't shoot it, or what?" came Fallen's tense question.

Scott had to pause a second before remembering that unlike Remy's smaller Dragon 2, Fallen's Lucky Dragon was armed with plasma cannons she had designed and also had some big guns with armor piercing rounds if needs be. It would be nice to remove what was clearly and enemy combatant but damn, it was just too risky. "We can't be sure that none of our guys are on board."

Fallen nodded and let it go. Prisoners had been taken before and probably would be again. It was why they were here in the first place after all.

"We could track it," Jean suggested, but the words had no more left her mouth than the big chopper flashed brightly and then winked out of view. Romulus might not have been able to teleport it, but he had been able to cloak it somehow.

"Just take us down," Scott grumbled, hoping that wasn't some kind of mistake.

They were relieved when moments later, after Jean had dropped them all down as neat as you please into the hanger, they could just make out the Outkasts walking off but also Logan and Remy making for the Dragon 2. It looked like all the missing were more or less accounted for.

"Yer late," Logan grumbled though he wasn't displeased to see them. He didn't know that Gryfon had sent for them but the X-men were pretty quick. It didn't take them long to figure out when something was off.

"What happened here?" Scott wanted to know. He could see that most of the Red Team looked smoky and battered. Logan as usual was a big bloody mess.

Logan gave them a quick rundown, or at least the bits he knew. Remy filled in the rest. Scott listened and then gave his own story. While Remy was happy to have Gryfon not only accounted for but somewhat redeemed, Logan wasn't thrilled about the dirty Starktech bullets. "You sure it's safe for you guys to even be standing here?"

"Hank said our exposure was limited and things didn't look too good down here. We took the chance." Scott looked Remy over. "You guys okay?"

"Oui. Little battered but we whole. We gotta roll, we want to beat Fury outta here. See you back home."

"Too late," Hercules grumbled, pointing upwards.

Remy looked up in dismay to see a small cadre of semi-silent choppers now filling up the space over the open hanger and men in full combat gear were busily sliding down long black ropes. They quickly formed a circle around the group of X-men, their guns raised. It was easy to see that most of the men were nervous and afraid. They had guns, yes, but what good were they really, against such a group of high powered mutants? This kind of confrontation was what Remy had wanted to avoid. Fury was sure to be a pain in the ass about all this.

And sure enough, here was the man himself arriving with a second group of soldiers, sliding down one of those thick black ropes like he had done it his whole life. He was twice the age as most of his men but you would never have known it from the long tall way he walked. Each stride conveyed power and confidence, not unlike Romulus himself. Fury was a fit and trim white man dressed in the dark navy SHIELD uniform and long black jacket, but what really stood out on him was the black eye patch. Even partially disabled he was still intimidating. Not a man to fool around with.

Jean saw him come and raised her hand. "You and your men should keep your distance. Some of us have been exposed to the Flush virus."

Fury scowled as menacingly as only an eye patched man could. "Then you guys shouldn't even have been here."

"Well, that just might be on you," Scott was quick to fire back. He then briefly explained about the dirty bullets Gryfon had been shot with. "Are you keeping tabs on where you store your toys, Fury?"

Fury didn't even try to apologize, he said simply, "More like you guys sure like to take risks you really shouldn't." His lack of willingness to share wasn't entirely groundless. There had been a lot of strain since both SHIELD and the X-men had collaborated to remove Jason Frost from Twilight. The op had succeeded, but the X-men had come out on top of that one, gaining unlimited access to Twilight while only doling it out under a limited basis to SHIELD and then only to forensic crews finishing up on Frost. Fury, being very protective of his national security, felt cheated. "I suppose I shouldn't be all that surprised to see you guys here, even when you didn't even call this in. Party crashing?"

Logan gestured to the hanger. "Butch Madison sends his regards. But you already knew that, right?" As he was speaking, he couldn't help but wonder just how much Fury knew about Romulus. More than he was likely to say. Still, Logan couldn't help but jab, "Don't suppose you know where these fellas got all their Starktech from? A Night Train or two?"

Fury stood still, chewing on that a minute before he chose to answer or not. He chose not and demanded, "I'm going to need you to formally debrief."

"Yeah, we'll get right on that," Logan quipped and started walking away.

"Hey!" Fury snarled but to no avail. The man wasn't afraid of him, never had been.

Remy stepped up and just looked at him in the eye - the eyepatch was so unnerving! "We got wounded, patron. Got to get dem out an' safe. You want yo' statement, you best come on to Arizona."

"I could detain you."

"You could try," the Thief suggested, but the look on his face wasn't friendly. He'd had enough fun for one day and only wanted to get back home. He certainly wasn't going to let Fury stop him from doing that. He gave Fury his back and walked up the ramp of his ship, leaving the man to his work.

Fury hesitated, gritting his teeth. Truth was he had plenty here to keep him busy and Butch had given him some information up front already. Logan's story didn't conflict with what he had been told. That didn't mean he didn't intend to get the full scoop on the day's doings sooner or later.

**(break)**

Remy stumbled into the Dragon happy to be home and back in familiar ground, but at the same time gasping in pain. He couldn't make a fist with his right hand, could hardly move his fingers at all let alone feel them. He was numb from the wrist down. He was dripping blood everywhere in spite of the hand kerchief, making quite the mess. He hoped it wasn't serious, it looked like nothing more than several deep punctures from Sabretooth's large claws, but it hurt like a bastard. He feared nerve damage the most. He might need a stitch or two in the deeper places. He took one look at the handles of his pilot stick and hesitated, having his doubts.

"What good it do you 'avin' all disz exzpenszive body armor it don' keep you from gettin' urt, non?" Aiden teased in his ear, helping him into his seat.

"Gonna 'ave to talk to my guy 'bout better gloves," Remy promised, wincing as he relaxed down into the chair.

"Yer already so armored up, it's a wonder you kin even moves as it is," Kimble added from his own seat, a soft whimper of pain leaking out.

Remy watched him, a half smile at Kimble's joke coming through in spite of his pain. Kimble had both of his ruined hands in his lap and for once Remy could actually sympathize with what that actually might feel like. At least Kimble didn't need his hands to fly.

Remy grunted in gratitude when Aiden was there by his side, having brought some gauze and some bandages. The Siskan didn't speak but skillfully went to work, cleaning and wrapping Remy's hand. Once more the Thief was grateful for the medical training his boys had received. It was certainly coming in handy today.

Julien stood nearby. Though his face showed nothing, Remy could see in the boy's shine that he felt some sympathy for his father's injury. It was the blood and the pain on Remy's face, making this real.

Watching this complicated reaction from his son gave Remy an idea. "Jules, you t'ink you could 'elp us out 'ere?"

Julien took a step back in fear. "Me? What can I do?" As far as he was concerned, he had been pretty much useless on this outing so far. He hadn't changed to water to make a brilliant escape or used powerful lightning bolts to send Sabretooth flying. Instead he had cowered down during the skirmish and hadn't fought at all, mindful of his own poor damaged hand.

"Need you to power up de Dragon, get our asses outta 'ere. What say you let Aiden dere take dat collar off, neh?"

Julien took a step back, his eyes wide with horror. "No way!"

"You gotta do it, fils. De team need you. You gotta try sooner or later."

"What are you so afraid of, Judas? Afraid you might kill someone?" Hercules teased sharply, his eyes anything but playful.

Julien glared at Remy. "You promised not to tell!"

Trigger stepped back. "Woah, who did you kill?" He was awed a bit by the unexpected revelation – there was no way Julien had faked that outrage - but then thought back on his earlier prediction of Julien fitting the mold of the battered kid who brought a gun to school to wipe out all the bullies. Maybe his appraisal hadn't been that far off the mark.

Already outed, Julien answered with an eerie calm, "My dad, right after he smashed my hand." Maybe he could at least get some fear points out of it.

"That's harsh, man," Hercules replied to that, his eyes a bit wide. He had never taken the time to question just how Julien's hand had ended up mangled as it was. For all he had known it might have been a birth defect. This new knowledge changed a lot of things. His remark wasn't a rebuke, but had been given in sympathy. He was no stranger to abuse and he was looking at Julien in a whole new way now. Remy was glad to see it.

Izzie interrupted with a soft question, "I thought Gambit was your dad?"

Julien just scowled and grumbled, "My real dad. The one who actually stuck around."

Remy sighed and crossed his arms, careful with his bandaged hand. "For de record I didn't tell de kids any'ting, fils, you done dat yo own self, jumping to conclusions. Second, I didn't take off on you, yo' momma chose not to tell me about you. Like I say already a hundred damn times already, I didn't even know you existed 'til we saved yo' ass at Twilight."

Hercules was looking at Julien, his mind still trying to process all this. It was true that the kids knew very little about Julien. Julien stayed to himself and was bullied when he didn't. This was the most they had heard about Julien's personal life and it explained a lot, especially why he seemed to hate Remy so much.

"Maybe we kin hash all this out laters when we gots more time," Kimble interjected, his voice strained and tired. There was no fighting to be done in here, but there was work. "We gots ta goes."

Julien was looking at Kimble now, worried by how awful he sounded. It was enough that he nodded at Aiden. Remy reached into a pocket and tossed Aiden a tiny silver key. Julien hadn't been the only child to be rescued from Twilight with a restraining collar though he was the only one who still wore one. Hank had used the other collars to fashion a key and had given it to Remy in the hopes that Julien might some day come to the decision he had made now. Aiden used the key to unlock the collar and removed it carefully, taking possession of it. He hoped that Julien would never need it again in spite of what he had been promised.

Julien swooned a bit once it was off, feeling his body tingle all over. He hadn't realized just how much the collar had dampened his senses. He had worn it for too long. He looked at his hands, expecting them to be glowing or something, he felt just a little too funky.

Remy stood and offered Julien his seat. "She all yours."

"I don't know... I could break the ship or something."

Gambit leaned in close, watching the boy with a full understanding. This was a huge first step. "Don't worry, fils. You can't overload de Dragon, she got too many failsafes."

"I can't control it."

"No way yer gonna overloads the ship," Kimble continued to persuade. "Remy's real strong too, but this ship kin handles him easy. No way yer gonna be stronger than him. Let's see if yer as brave and strong as we all hopes ya are."

Julien smiled a bit at that, he was flattered some by the compliment. He gingerly sat down in the pilot seat, nervous of its odd design. It seemed so strange to be in this chair, it was like sitting on the king's throne. The thought made him immediately self conscious and nervous. He didn't belong here.

"Lean forward, not back. It'll be more comfortable yo' first time," Remy advised, not letting Julien have any more time to talk himself out of this. He used his free hand to gently move his son into the better position while Aiden, having two good hands, properly adjusted the seat. Sitting forward was more like sitting on a motorcycle as opposed to a sitting in a chair and it did seem more like what it was, something that drove. Julien did as he was told, allowing Aiden to adjust the foot pedals as well to his shorter height.

"Now, grip de handles loose, you ain't goan fall off. It ain't like no real bike."

Julien did as directed, already starting to sweat. They were all watching him and he just knew he was going to screw this up. The restraining collar's absence was very noticeable now and his fingers were tingling in an unnatural way. He didn't like it. He took one hand off, rubbing his palm on his pants.

"Relax, fils. She don't bite."

"What do I do next?" Julien questioned sharply, just too nervous to control his anxiety.

Remy let it slide. "Close yo' eyes and give de 'andles just a little charge, nice and easy."

Julien closed his eyes and willed it to happen. Unfortunately, his body had other ideas. His fingers glowed just slightly red, but the energy never left his hands. It was too embarrassing. "Fuck!" he hissed under his breath. Too much power when he hadn't wanted it, none when he did.

Gambit tried to be encouraging. "Don't hurry when dere ain't no need, eh? Dat rush, dat tingle you feelin'? Just send it out."

Julien just glared at him, needing to vent his frustration somehow. "I don't know what that means."

Trigger stepped forward, chewing his gum, too cool. "Dude, it's like having to pee. You hold it in too long, sometimes it doesn't want to come out right away."

"Trigger!" someone complained in disgust. It sounded like Izzie but Julien couldn't be sure. There was some laughter involved though.

"No, it's true!" Trigger protested. He looked back at Julien, speaking to him nicely for the first time ever. It was different now, teaching instead of teasing. "You feel that fullness, like you just can't hold it anymore. Just let it go, let it out. You must be full to bursting right about now after having had to hold it in for so long. Feel that? Just let it out."

Julien's hands glowed a bit more brightly. "I think so..."

"Then, my boy, just let that bitch right on out."

Julien gave it a bit more and there was a little crackle and sizzle. Julien was startled by it but Kimble just laughed. "Don't be scairt. She kin takes it. My brother built her good. Just let it fly."

Remy nodded. "Just keep yo' hands on de stick handles, Kim will do de rest."

Julien closed his eyes and relaxed, just giving in to it. There was a hum under the floor now as the engines revved up and the ship's interior lights brightened. He stayed as he was, just letting it happen.

The others cheered him on, genuinely interested in this. First they chanted his name calling him Judas, but then it began to change to Julien when they saw him boost the ship with no trouble. It pleased him beyond measure. The others had really stepped up and made the grade today, now it was time for him to do so as well.

Remy was smiling, too. "Dat was a real fine boost. Now how 'bout we take her for a spin? 'Bout time we blow dis pop stand."

"Okay..."

Remy stayed as he was, standing next to the pilot stick and not taking a seat, but Aiden retreated, returning to his precious Kimble. Kimble scootched forward as the ship readied itself, giving wordless consent to Aiden's settling in the pilot seat behind him, a first. The seats hadn't been designed for two to ride, but the long seat was generous enough for this with the back in the sleeping position. Kim relaxed back into Aiden and let his arms secure him. Kimble was lucky in that unlike Remy, he didn't need his hands to fly, only his mind. He leaned back and closed his eyes, setting his hands carefully down in his lap, trying to get as comfortable as he could. He searched out the Dragon with the mechanical part of his mind, found her and smiled, the connection made.

Julien gasped softly when he felt the familiar change in air pressure as the craft began to rise. He had felt this many times but not from here. The sensation in his hands changed slightly, the Dragon was now drawing power from him instead of him giving it. It was a wonderful, nearly orgasmic sensation and he swooned a bit forward, he couldn't help it.

Remy laughed softly and lay his bandaged hand gently on Julien's shoulder. He was a bit sly about it, but he ever so quietly set his good hand just over Julien's own. The ship surged just a bit, as if recognizing its true owner.

Aiden snorted just a bit and jokingly grumbled, _**"Liar,"**_ in Siskan.

"Quoi?" Remy returned. _**"Never said I couldn't fly, just dat we needed de 'elp."**_

Aiden didn't bother to reply and Remy looked away, catching that Julien was now glaring up at him. Julien hadn't needed to understand the language to get the gist of what was going on. He was feeling too good to argue about it though. It was just too exhilarating. In this Trigger was right, it was the best rush to finally release all that he had been holding back all these years. It had been building up inside of him all this time and letting it out made him feel awake and alive for the first time in a long time.

It did remind him some a bit of sexual release. He was still technically a virgin, but being of an age and a loner he had learned how to manage his own urges by himself. Boosting and flying the ship was like that feeling of release only better. He could do this forever. All of the pain he had been feeling in his joints was gone except for his hand. He didn't know if that was just the release of energy or something else. Right now he didn't care. He felt amazing.

Remy watched him power the ship, smiling a bit when he saw the boy relax fully into his seat, even close his eyes a bit. Being his first flight he would be tired by the time they landed but it would be so worth it.

Gambit was proud of the entire squad, truth be told. They held up well for a supposed last chance team. These kids had all been rejected from previous teams and he wouldn't have parted with any of them after this. Each had done well enough to be guaranteed a spot when the time came for the official cuts. They would all go up a level that was for sure - the kids to level twos, and Kimble and Aiden up to threes. Not too shabby. While Remy had hoped his team would be notorious at least, they had done him one better.

Logan stood nearby, chowing down on some of those yummy protein bars. He was healing nicely but needed the food to catch up. It wasn't as good as a nice big fat steak, but it would do. As he munched, he looked over the kids. Earlier he had seriously doubted Remy's skill as a squad leader but after seeing how well he had worked the kids on the way out he was quickly changing his mind. Remy still needed to get the kids' heads on straight about who should be dating whom though, Logan couldn't believe Grace had been that stupid. Some folks were just off limits, Kyle being on or near the top of that list.

Grace was at Logan's feet, holding Kyle the whole way home. He had relaxed into her once they were leaving for real. He had started growling a choking sort of purr for her, happy to be there. Being held like this by her reminded him of those tender moments he'd had with Skye, only this was better because deep down he knew that she would never mess around with his head like Skye had done. Sleep soon claimed both him and his gentle noise, his body needing the rest.

Grace had felt the vibration of his affectionate croon and it did a lot to calm her fears that he wasn't going to let her stay close. Their future was so uncertain, but she wasn't worrying about that now. He was so warm against her, the best blanket she could ever ask for.

The flight was quick, only a half hour or so. Julien remained on the stick the whole ride home though he was just about fully asleep by the time they landed. Kimble was just as tired but still managed to get them down in one piece and never was there a more grateful crew. They were home at last.

To be continued in Where the Wild Things Go.


End file.
